Lost Paradise
by Daemonic Maid
Summary: Sakura walks the fine line between paradise and damnation as she deals with consequences of her decisions. Tangled in the deceitful web of the gods, she fights for the life she loves. *SasuSaku*OCwarning* *Later chapters undergoing rewriting. To be updated soon*
1. Prologue

**Lost Paradise**

**Prologue: When It All Begins  
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**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. So sad for me. :(**

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><p>"Sakura! Sakura! Wake up! Time for school." Her mother shook her gently.<p>

"Ugh…what time is it?" Sakura asked groggily.

"Seven-thirty. School starts at eight-fifteen, get up."

"What! Why didn't you wake me up earlier?" Sakura shot up and raced to the shower. Damnit. She was going to be late!

"I tried, honey. This is the third time I had to wake you up." Her mom called from down the hallway.

She finished her ten-minute shower, and rushed down the stairs while hopping on one leg and pulling up her other sock. Grabbing the sandwich her mom left on the table, she took a bite before yelling, "Gotta go! Bye!"

In one move, she swooped down to grab her bag which she had placed right in front of the door last night, and used her ankle to twist the doorknob. She walked at a brisk pace all the while munching on her sandwich. Within ten minutes, she had reached the school.

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><p>"G'morning! You're twenty minutes early today." greeted Ino, her best friend since the diaper days. She grunted in response.<p>

"Let me guess, you couldn't sleep so you stayed up 'till five a.m. writing your new piece for the school paper." Ino smiled knowingly.

"I swear Ino," Sakura replied, munching on a sandwich, "sometimes it's like you could read minds."

* * *

><p>…<em>The darkness had awoken, and, with help from Gaea, the gods were hidden beneath Uranus' starry cloak, never to behold Olympus until the darkness has ceased to exist.<em>

"Eh? What does this mean, hm?" Kakashi asked amusedly as he read over the story Sakura had written for the school paper.

"I told you already, sensei, I don't know. Every story I write just flows out of my head and onto the paper." she replied.

"Hmm…I see…" Kakashi answered with a nod and his signature eye crinkle, and then the bell rung.

"Alright, I better go." she squeaked hurriedly before bowing respectfully and running of the room.

Suddenly, Anko grabbed the stapled sheets of paper from his hand muttering, "Damn, are you sure she's not Blessed? Her story's more accurate than the Chronicles. That, and she already rewrote the Iliad and the Odyssey without having read them first."

The Blessed are those who have been touched by the spirit of a god or goddess before birth; very rarely, there are those who have been blessed by multiple gods or goddesses.

"I didn't say that she wasn't Blessed. I said that I didn't know _who_ Blessed her," he paused, "And how _would_ you know if she's more accurate than the Chronicles. You weren't there yet, remember? And I don't remember her writing anything resembling the Odyssey…or the Iliad."

Each of the Blessed are given a special ability or multiple abilities by their respective god or goddess. These are called Talents or Blessings. It may be insignificant, such as eating at an abnormally fast pace, or it can be amazingly powerful, such as creating earthquakes at the touch of a finger.

The Talent given to the Blessed is usually something related to the abilities of the god who Blessed him or her. For example, one Blessed by Dionysius can consume large amounts of alcohol without getting inebriated.

"But you were…ugh, we're getting off topic. Just hurry up and get the others in here." Anko said.

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><p><em>An hour later…<em>

"So, you're telling us that another one of your students is Blessed, this time by Apollo?" Kurenai asked.

"Well, I'm not exactly sure that her Blessing is Prophecy, since she rewrote the Chronicles, which is the past, and not the future. But if it is, then she is most likely Blessed by Apollo. " Kakashi clarified.

"Well then, maybe she isn't Blessed, there's always the possibility that she's an oracle." Asuma suggested.

Oracles are the bridges between the Mortal World and the Spirit World, which is a parallel dimension where the spirits of the gods and goddesses reside. They are not considered as one of the Blessed however there have been instances in which the oracle is Blessed. There is only one oracle born in each generation, and the new one only appears the moment the older one has dies.

"She can't be an oracle." Kakashi said determinedly.

"How sure are you?" Kurenai asked.

"Sure enough, honestly," Kakashi answered matter-of-factly.

"Fine; it's your head on the line, not mine. Now for the fun part, Kakashi, get to Tsunade-sama's office ASAP." Anko ordered.

"Yes, milady," Kakashi grumbled in a sarcastic tone.

"What was that?" Anko asked sweetly.

"Uh…you're pretty?" Kakashi answered nervously.

"I thought so." Anko said.

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><p>"No way, hon. Not gonna happen." Sakura said as she slammed her locker shut.<p>

"But, think about it! He likes you, you like him. He is the hottest guy in school and you are, dare I say it, the most sought-after girl. If you guys get together, you'll be the ultimate high-school power couple!" Ino said as she strode beside Sakura.

"What does that even mean Ino? And didn't you have a crush on him?" Sakura rolled her eyes.

"Forget about what it means, and I DID have a crush on him but you still DO have one, Sak. No," Ino grinned deviously, "don't deny it. You know Sasuke is THE hottest guy on earth— you can't be satisfied with being JUST friends with him!"

"Ino, he's not just a friend— he's practically a brother to me." Sakura shook her head with a small amused laugh.

"You two established that 'brother-sister' friendship thing in three years ago! As in that was a really long time ago, things change!" Ino argued, waving her hands in the air for emphasis.

"I don't need that drama right now, Ino. I have to focus on studying."

"Don't give me that line again Sakura! You know you are so damn smart you don't have to study at all! The answers just magically come to you." Ino waved wildly.

Sakura ignored her. "Hi Naruto, Sasuke!" She waved at the two boys.

"Heh, she greeted me first! That means she likes me more!" Naruto taunted.

"Shut up, dobe." Sasuke said, casting an annoyed look at Naruto.

"Oh, grow up." Sakura rolled her eyes heavenward, "Why don't you go ahead, Ino, I'll just meet you there."

"Sure, just remember what I told you, okay hon?" Ino did a tiny wave before flipping her hair and making her way to class.

"What did she tell you?" Naruto was curious.

"Mind your own business, dobe." Sasuke shook his head.

"Don't tell me what to do, teme!"

"No fighting, boys." Sakura reminded them as she positioned herself between the two of them.

"But he started it!" Naruto pointed at Sasuke.

Sakura sighed, "Will you just shut up so we can walk to class without people staring at us?"

It had been this way since they were twelve years old. The first day the three of them met was the first day of school that year in homeroom. Their teacher had grouped the class into three person groups for a year-long project: make new friends.

At first they hadn't gotten along well, with Sasuke and Naruto's constant bickering and Naruto's crush on Sakura and her huge crush on Sasuke.

Then during their mid-terms in the next year, Sasuke's family got into an accident— his aunt and uncle died, leaving his cousin Yuki an orphan, his parents were injured pretty badly and his brother was in a coma. In that hospital room, Sakura and Naruto immediately stood by Sasuke without saying a word. Without having been asked, both dropped their studies and stayed the night with Sasuke, caring for him and comforting him when no one else could. Needless to say, Naruto and Sasuke had failed the exam and she herself barely passed. Fortunately, three months later Sasuke's parents both made a miraculous full recovery, and a month after that, his brother, Itachi, woke up from his coma.

Since then, the three have been inseparable. Sure, they still have petty arguments among themselves. Sasuke and Naruto bicker like an old married couple. And Sakura has a short temper. But, they're always there for each other.

"Sakura? Sakura! Earth to Sakura!" Naruto stopped walking and was waving a hand at her face.

"What?" she snapped.

"You alright? You kinda zoned out on us." Naruto said sheepishly. Sasuke raised his brow at her, his own way of showing his concern.

"Oh, I'm fine. No need to worry. I was just thinking." She replied with a sweet smile.

**"Will Miss Sakura Haruno please report to the principal's office, thank you."** The loudspeaker boomed overhead.

"What did you frame on me this time, Naruto?"

"Nothing! I swear!" Naruto raised his hands in the universal sign which meant 'I mean no harm.'

"Well. I better get going." Sakura said.

Sasuke and Naruto both shared a knowing look behind her back. "We're coming with you."

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><p>"Sakura, please take a seat." Tsunade, the school principal gestured at the only vacant seat left in her whole office. It seemed like the whole faculty was there, all stuffed into the rather spacious office, with Naruto and Sasuke standing by the door, not looking awkward at all.<p>

"Now, I want to clarify that you are not in trouble—"

Sakura let out a sigh of relief.

"And I know how crazy this is going to sound, but I need you to put your hand on this glass ball." Tsunade raised a crystal ball which was approximately the size of her head.

"Oh…okay?" Sakura raised a brow, but still pressed her hand to the crystal ball.

"Is this supposed to happen?" She watched nervously as the ball started glowing, bathing the room in brilliant yellow and gold, before the light died down.

"Well, I guess that settles it. She's one of Ap-" Kakashi stood up.

"No, it's not done yet." Tsunade interrupted him.

The ball glowed once more, now a calm, luminescent mix of blue and purple. Sakura started feeling strange, a bit tingly.

"No. No way." Everyone's mouth seemed to hang open.

"Why? What happened?" Sakura looked around and found everyone staring at her.

"Sakura, no! Why you?" Naruto had grabbed her by the shoulders and was shaking her fiercely. Sasuke stared at her with equal disbelief.

"Why? What does it mean?" She raised a brow. The teachers were staring at her with a mix of awe and astonishment.

"I can't believe this. A second one…here…with us…right now." Anko muttered.

"What's happening? Why are you all staring at me like that?" She asked again.

"You should be feeling it right about…now." Kakashi said, glancing at his watch,

"Feeling wha-" Sakura promptly dropped to the ground unconscious.

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><p><strong>Thank you so much for reading this chapter. As most of you may not know me, I used to be .rose.1110...I think. It was a few years ago so...yeah. I had one story, Living the Not So Normal Life. It was discontinued, so I have no idea what to do with it now. It's still in my hard drive, though.<strong>

**And also I would like to thank my dear cuz, .0818, for her encouraging (read: cornering) me into posting this up.**

**Feel free to review. Flames are...acceptable...probably.  
><strong>


	2. Chapter 1 It All Begins

**Lost Paradise**

**Chapter One- It All Begins**

**Disclaimer: Don't own, don't sue, please.  
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><p>When Sakura woke up, she saw Yuki holding a glowing hand over her forehead and panicked.<p>

"Relax. I'm just using a healing spell. It won't bite." Sasuke's cousin, Yuki, said with a hint of amusement.

"Why am I in the infirmary?" Sakura asked hoarsely.

"You sort of passed out in Tsunade's office," Yuki answered, "luckily for you, Naruto caught you before you hit your head on the floor. But he did squeeze you too tight though. You almost stopped breathing."

"So, all that was real?" Sakura asked weakly. _They are so doing a hell lot of explaining._

"As real as can be." Yuki replied lightly then touched a glowing finger to her own temple and murmured, _"She's up. Get in here."_

Seconds later, Naruto burst through the door with Sasuke and _another_ Yuki in tow, only the second Yuki was wearing her uniform, and, Sakura noted, the Yuki sitting beside Sakura was dressed casually.

Sakura's first comment on the subject was, _"You have **got** to be kidding me."_

The Yuki that sat beside Sakura stretched out her hand and the other Yuki touched it and got sucked into the first Yuki's palm.

"What the-?" Sakura stared open mouthed.

"It's a Doppelganger spell." Yuki grinned mischievously.

"Okay, then. Could someone please tell me what's going on and why you're all in on the secret?" Sakura asked as calmly as possible.

"Long story short, you're one of us now- one of the Blessed. And from what I know, you've been Blessed by Apollo and Artemis. They gave you some superpowers or something." Naruto rambled.

"Talents, Naruto." Sasuke corrected.

"Uh, right," Naruto continued, "So, the superpowers are called Talents or Blessings, whichever you prefer."

"Oh, and once a Blessed one realizes his or her full potential, which means, when they discover all their Blessings, they receive a Mark from their Patron…or in your case, Patrons, who for you are Apollo and Artemis. Oh, and remember that the Mark cannot be seen by mundane humans, or what I like to call 'mundies'" Yuki added. "That's about it, any questions?"

"Wait…You expect me to believe all this crap you're throwing at me?" Sakura said incredulously.

"Yeah, why not? You already wrote it down in the first place. Remember this?" Yuki threw something down on Sakura's lap.

"My story…the one I wrote for the school paper."

"Good. Now read _this_." Yuki tossed her another bunch of papers. "We call that the Chronicles. It documents how we, the Blessed, came into existence."

"It's basically exactly the way you wrote it…except yours is missing the ending." Yuki shrugged as Sakura quickly browsed the papers Yuki gave her.

"So what's the real ending?"

"Even though their bodies were hidden away, the immortal souls of gods and goddesses still roam this earth, and the search for the ones who will find Olympus and free their immortal bodies. Thus, they give a bit of their powers to humans, while they are at their most vulnerable state— as newborns."

"So that means that the gods and goddesses are still alive…in a manner of speaking." Sakura's mouth hung open.

"Yep." Naruto answered.

"And we aren't human?"

"We are…_enhanced_ humans…in a way. You have to believe us. How else can you explain this?" Yuki held up a glowing hand.

"And this." The Naruto whole hand had suddenly set ablaze.

"Okay, okay. I believe you!" Sakura said quickly, with a bit of panic, "Put that out, you might trigger the alarm."

"How many Talents can a single Blessed person have?" Sakura asked.

"Well it depends on the god or goddess, see, some gods, like Zeus, usually like to show off and his blessed ones usually have a lot of Blessings, but sometimes he gives only one Blessing." Naruto replied.

"And you're Blessed by who?" Sakura asked, pushing away the small feeling of betrayal that had settled in her chest.

"Hephesteus, the god of the fire and the forge," Naruto's tone was proud as he pulled up his shirt and showed Sakura the tattoo of a large fire, that was as big as a volleyball, on his toned abdomen.

"Zeus," Sasuke said with pride, "and Hades." He pulled up both sleeves of his uniform and right there, in the middle of upper arm was a glossy five-inches-long white-blue lightning bolt, and on the other arm, a black and silver eye-catching shadow of a helmet."

"Hecate, the goddess of the dark moon, crossroads and witchcraft," Yuki pulled down the neckline of her blouse, a shimmering black crescent moon the size of her palm was tattooed an inch below the hollow of her neck.

"Then, I'm assuming that a new Blessed kid popping up isn't out of the norm," she mused with suspicion in her eyes, "but then, why were they all surprised when they saw me?"

"Well, you're special." Naruto grinned sheepishly, "You got two Patrons, which is extremely rare. We call it 'double-Blessed'. Sasuke's like you, too."

Sakura nodded blankly then she asked sadly, and adopted a hurt expression. "Why didn't anyone tell me about all this before?"

"Oh, Sakura, it's not their fault—they _couldn't_ tell you. Tsunade made me place a silence spell on those who knew, especially a strong one on those two, so that they couldn't tell you or anyone who doesn't know about this whole mess." Yuki said comfortingly as she sat beside Sakura on the bed.

"But why?" Sakura asked, a bit louder than her last question.

"Some of the things we do are considered…" Sasuke paused to find the right word, "...immoral... by most mundane humans.

"This isn't all fun and games. Power comes with a price you know, and it's especially expensive for us." Yuki said sadly, "We were kinda hoping that you wouldn't end up like us."

"Why? What happens?" Sakura asked curiously.

Sasuke simply shook his head, "It differs, from person to person."

"Then what happens to you guys?" Sakura asked.

"This happens to me," Yuki replied as she covered her eyes with her hand, which flashed a quick blue light, before uncovering and opening them. Her irises, which were once the darkest kind of brown that could pass for black, were now so white that you couldn't tell if she had irises and pupils at all.

"Can you see?" Sakura asked curiously.

"Well, I know you're sitting on the bed, but I can't _literally_ see." Yuki answered with a grim smile.

"I…change." Sasuke said slowly.

"Into what?" Sakura asked.

"A little kid's worst nightmare." Naruto answered for him.

"What does that mean?"

"You'll find out someday," Sasuke drawled, _'and hopefully not so soon.' _he added in his thoughts.

"I lose control…and I spontaneously combust at random times." Naruto said bashfully, then he saw that Sakura's pout and sad eyes had not faded.

"We're sorry for hurting your feelings Sakura, but we thought that if we kept quiet about this then nothing would happen to you." he said, dropping the suffix for Sakura's name to show that he was truly serious about this. Sasuke stood beside him looking guilty and gloomy and just plain _sorry_.

Sakura immediately forgot about her feelings of rejection and pulled both of her boys down to the bed so that she could give them a big group hug.

"Aww…" Yuki cooed then yawned, "Damn, it's still too early for me to be up- it's still noon. I'm going back to bed now. Bye." Yuki raised a hand, and the uniform-clad Yuki reappeared beside her, then the original Yuki disappeared.

"And she just leaves?" Sakura asks no one in particularly.

Sasuke, the Yuki clone, and Naruto simply nod simultaneously.

"Hmm…alright then, we should be getting back to class now." the Yuki-clone said.

Sakura checked her watch and saw that it was half-past noon. She'd been out in the infirmary for four hours. Ino must be worried sick right now. Then something occurred to her.

"Aren't I supposed to have a cover story?" Sakura glanced at Naruto then at Sasuke.

Naruto dropped his serious expression and laughed sheepishly.

"Don't worry, Sakura-chan, we told everyone that you collapsed, which, BTW, actually happened." Naruto said.

Sakura nodded, "Okay then, let's get back to class. And Naruto, _never_ say 'BTW' ever again; it makes you sound gay."

"Seriously?" Naruto asked honestly.

Sasuke shrugged and got up from his comfortable seat on the really soft bed.

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><p>After assuring Ino and a few other concerned people that, "<em>no, I didn't really fall down the stairs,"<em> (because, apparently, Naruto found it funny telling every single student that came by that she fell down the stairs and knocked herself out-literally), Sakura noticed that the teachers gave her strange looks, and she knew it wasn't about her hair because she was pretty sure that after more than half a decade of studying at this school, her pink hair wasn't that strange anymore. But still, it led to this:

"Sakura, did you notice the teachers staring at you earlier?" Ino asked curiously after classes.

"Uhm…no?"

After everything that had just taken place in the past five hours, Sakura found herself realizing something, and she sighed.

_This is troublesome. _

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><p>"And how exactly did I <em>not <em>notice this before?" Sakura stared wide-eyed at the huge metal door in Tsunade's office that wasn't there before.

"Easy. It was behind that bookshelf." Yuki pointed to the mahogany bookshelf that had been pushed aside.

"O...kay?" Sakura mumbled disbelievingly.

Yuki punched in a code at the security panel beside the door, and it swung open to reveal a flight of stairs going down, leading to another door.

Sakura snapped out of her shock and paid attention to Yuki "...your own code. You better not forget it. We had to replace that security feature hundreds of times. One time Naruto _melted _it, and the next, Sasuke short-circuited it...and don't even get me started on Gai-sensei. He always insists on-oh wait a minute," Yuki paused to unlock the door at the end of the stairs, "As I was saying, he always insists on pounding in the code."

They stepped into a wide hallway, and Yuki pointed out rooms and little trivia and warnings.

"This is the Olympic-sized pool- did you know that Sasuke can't swim to save his life?" Yuki mentioned as Sakura bent down and dipped a hand in the still water.

"It's warm."

"It's always heated, like 24/7. If the heater breaks, we just get Naruto."

They walked out and stopped outside a door.

"These are training grounds one, two and three," She pointed out three consecutive doors, "four, five and six are above ground. I'll show you where they are tomorrow. And don't forget to check the schedules before you open the door. One time, I forgot to check the schedule, and when I opened the door, I almost became a shish-ka-bob."

They walked further down the hallway, with Yuki gesturing animatedly and Sakura feeling like her head's about to blow from all the info.

"And this is the armory," Yuki knocked on a door before swinging it open. "There's a shooting range up in TG4. TG is short for training ground, by the way."

They entered a large room with hundreds and thousands of shelves. "Whoa. And these are all arranged?" Sakura stared wide-eyed at all the weapons.

"Yeah, by kind, you know, guns in one corner, blades in the other, bows in the back, and projectiles in between. But if you take anything, you have to list it down if you could, for inventory. And if you want to put in a request for something not in stock or something they don't have, you have to put in an order with Tsunade. She'll just let you know when it's there."

"The lab is behind the infirmary upstairs, there's a hidden door behind the medicine cabinet. The lab makes poisons and antidotes, so if you want to learn more about poisons and antidotes or how to make your own, Shizune will be able to help you."

"Okay?" Sakura said outwardly, but inwardly, she thought, '_Why would I need poisons?'_

"...from here, we go straight then turn left. The elevator will lead us straight to the hallway outside our rooms. Yours is the one after Sasuke's, the one with the blank nameplate. And this," She held up an ornate gold key, "is the key to your room. They got your stuff from your place a few hours ago, and Tsunade has arranged everything."

"Wait, what!" Sakura froze mid-step, "I can't stay here! What about my parents? And my clothes? What about if Ino comes over to my place tonight?"

"Relax. I know it's a lot of change, a bit much for a day, but you'll adjust. You'll get used to it," Yuki said with a confident smile, "Everything's been taken care of. Your stuff is in your room. You can visit your parents over the weekend or something. But it's too dangerous for you and them if you stay with them, so it's best for everyone if you just stay here, okay?"

"...Fine." Sakura sighed. _'Goodbye, life as I knew it.'_

"If it helps, you can hang out at any of our rooms for as long as you like. No curfew."

Sakura nodded before letting out a big sigh.

* * *

><p>Later that evening, Sakura found herself sitting on a soft black leather couch on the balcony of Sasuke's room. She admired the view of the school gardens, and the small pond with the occasional jumping fish.<p>

Sasuke silently took a seat beside her and gave her a bottle of fruit soda.

"Thanks," Sakura muttered as she popped it open and took a sip before she set it on the class coffee table in front of them. "You know, they want me to move in here tonight. They made me get my stuff from home earlier. But I don't want to stay in…_my_…room. It just feels weird." Sakura said without a hint of sadness in her tone. Sasuke nodded to show that he had heard her.

The Blessed all lived on Konoha territory, specifically, the school grounds. The entire east wing was for the teachers and staff and the west wing of the school was dedicated to the Blessed students. It was mostly deserted since there are only a few of them.

"I don't know if I can. I mean, it's all just so fast. How could I tell my parents about this? I know Tsunade said she would handle it, but, you know, I can't even believe I have special powers. I left my home this morning thinking that it would be just another day. And now…" Sakura sighed and leaned her head on Sasuke's shoulder, "The whole Chronicles thing was just plain coincidence, I swear. I mean, how can I be special? I'm five-foot-four. Average height. I've got normal body parts. I don't have any particular talents. "

"That's not true," Sasuke whispered to her, "Sakura, stop doubting yourself. You're...special." He took a sip from the can of root beer in his hand.

Sakura was surprised when Sasuke complimented her. Praises from him are few and far in between.

"Sasuke?"

"Hm?"

"Why are you being so nice to me tonight?"

"When I found out that I was Blessed, I was surprised, too. Fortunately, I had someone to rely on. I can understand what you're going through."

Sakura gave a small smile as Sasuke opened up a bit of himself to her. She treasured moments like these and knew that they meant as much to him as they did to her.

"Thank you."

They sat there in comfortable silence for the rest of the evening.

That night, Sakura slept on her new bed and dreamed of witches and bonfires and suns and moons and a dark haired knight in shining armor.

* * *

><p><strong>Hello, I'm back and here with the first chapter of Lost Paradise. Uhm...about the summary, please bear with me as I still can't find something I'm satisfied with. I think I've changed it about five times in the past three days so...yeah. I'll gladly accept any comments and suggestions to fix up that summary.<strong>

**Please DO review because that's where I get my inspiration and ideas. I'm really hoping for some critique. And don't be afraid to speak your mind. I like constructive criticism and lot's of love, but flames are fine...just don't overdo it.  
><strong>

**A lot of people hate OC's being main characters. So I understand if you hate or maybe (hopefully) like Yuki, my OC, just tell me why and I'll see what I can do about it.**


	3. Chapter 2 Finding Blessings

"Okay, now let go." Sasuke instructed.

Sakura gulped nervously and in an instant, sent the arrow flying. It hit the first arrow she had shot earlier, splitting it straight down the center.

It's been three days since Sakura discovered that she was Blessed. And right now, Sasuke and Sakura were alone…in the gym…at nine in the evening…with two bows and a hundred arrows. Talk about romantic, right? Not that Sakura would admit to even considering it romantic. After all, he was like her brother, right? Or was he supposed to be like a father, since Zeus is the father of Apollo and Artemis.

_No, it doesn't work that way, _a small voice inside her whispered._ Besides,_ the voice continued, _if that were true, then isn't Sasuke supposed to be a playboy?_ Sakura glanced at Sasuke with his impossibly good looks. _Never mind, _the voice muttered before it disappeared.

"Tell me why we're doing this again?" Sakura asked loudly, liking the way her voice bounces off the gym walls.

"Tsunade said that we have to find out which Blessing you have…and, you know…" Sasuke trailed off. Not that Sakura needed him to complete the sentence. She did know. Every Blessed One has to give up something in exchange for the Blessings or Talents they have received. Yuki already lost her sight. What if she herself lost an arm, or a leg?

"It doesn't work that way, especially for the both of us." Sasuke suddenly said out of nowhere.

"What?" Sakura asked, clearly confused.

"You won't lose an arm, or a leg. They make it so that you lose something important, but not so that you couldn't fight."

_I said that __part out loud?_ "Fight? Why?"

Sasuke sighed, "Yuki hasn't told you anything about fighting yet?"

Sakura shook her head and simultaneously fired an arrow. She watched in satisfaction as the arrow hit its mark.

"You know about the Chronicles, right?" Sasuke asked once more.

Sakura simply responded with a puzzled glance at him while shooting more arrows, now at moving targets.

"The gods and goddesses are trying to find someone to defeat the darkness and find Olympus," Sasuke simplified.

At Sakura's nod, he continued, "The darkness was defeated years ago. There is only one problem left."

"Finding Olympus." Sakura muttered.

"Now, at some point in history, the Blessed Ones found out that whoever finds Olympus get eternal power and ever since then there has been a lot of fighting. Eventually, alliances were formed, and then now, there are bigger groups." He explained, "We are part of Konohagakure, the village hidden in the leaves. And we have a few allies, one of them is Sunagakure, the village hidden in the sand."

Suddenly, the gym door was slammed open, startling Sakura.

"Uchiha! The southern barrier's been breached. Tsunade's sending the usual team." Neji yelled in a commanding tone.

"Be there in ten." Sasuke responded while quickly grabbing his backpack from under the bleachers.

"What's happening?" Sakura asked.

Sasuke answered her as he ran to the locker room, "The hunt."

Five minutes later, Sasuke emerged from the men's locker room dressed up in a tight black sleeveless zip-up shirt, black pants that were a bit tight, tucked into knee-high black boots. A silver sword was strapped to his back and he had white arm guards that covered his arms from his knuckles to his elbows.

"You look hot." Sakura blurted as soon as the thought reached her mind.

"Thanks." Sasuke gave her a cocky smirk.

When she realized what she had just said, she blushed and turned so red that her face could match a tomato. She thanked whoever was up there that Sasuke didn't tease her for it, and that Sasuke didn't see her blush because he was facing the other way.

Sasuke suddenly grabbed her by the waist and carried her in his arms (his very muscular arms. Oh _wow._) as he sped out of the gym so fast that everything was a blur, within seconds, they were in Tsunade's office.

"You stay here." Sasuke ordered as he set her down on one of the chairs.

"No, I'm coming with you." Sakura said defiantly.

"No, you're not. You could get hurt."

"Yes, she is," Tsunade said as she appeared near the doorway. She tossed Sakura a bow and a quiver filled with arrows, "You saw what she did in the gym just now, every target was hit dead-center. She might be able to help. It's a relatively safe mission anyway."

Sakura smiled, "Thank you, Tsunade-sama."

"Now, go. The infiltrators are from Grass. Your captain will fill you in on the rest," Tsunade said before Sasuke grabbed Sakura and carried her once more to the school gates.

Sakura felt out of place, being the only one still in school uniform.

The three of them were standing below a streetlight right behind the campus, clearly waiting for her and Sasuke.

Naruto had a half-zipped black long-sleeve over a bright orange shirt. His black pants were tucked into his brown boots. He had a pouch on his thigh and a large battle-axe was loosely tied to his back.

Neji wore a loose white robe-like shirt and long tan-colored pants with open-toed ankle-high boots. What startled Sakura the most was the small glimmering eye tattooed on his forehead, which was usually covered with a strip of white cloth.

Yuki was dressed in a short black dress that had long, loose sleeves, a tight bodice, a short pleated skirt, and a low neckline showing her black moon Mark, she also wore black mesh tights. She had a small pouch tied to her hip and her combat boots were light silver in color. The top half of her hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she wasn't using her illusion to cover her eyes which were now totally white.

"Why did you bring Sakura here?" Yuki asked.

"Tsunade's orders." Sasuke answered.

"But she hasn't been trained yet!" Naruto said, waving his arms for emphasis.

"I can fight, you know. I used to take MMA training before, remember?" Sakura said, annoyed.

"But can you kill?" Neji asked stoically.

"What?" Sakura froze.

Something Sasuke once said suddenly flashed in her mind. _"The things we do are considered…immoral by most mundane humans."_

"You need to be able to kill, Sakura. That's the main concept of 'eliminating the competition'," Yuki explained gently.

"Are you sure you want to come? I mean, we can always leave you as backup in case things go wrong, right?" Naruto said unsurely while looking at Neji who confirmed his statement.

"Yuki can stay hidden with Sakura; according to the report, there are only about five to ten enemies," Neji nodded to himself, "But if there are more than ten enemies, Yuki has to join the fight, and Sakura would be left defenseless."

"No, she won't. She has a Talent with the bow and arrow. She can defend herself." Sasuke said.

Sakura nodded; her eyes met Neji's, "I refuse to kill anyone, even an enemy, but I'm definitely not above decapitating them. I can defend myself."

Neji's eyes narrowed, "I'm only letting you sit out on this just this once since you're new to this all, but you need to be able to kill, Sakura. It is important that you kill them before they kill you."

"I understand." Sakura replied.

"Well, are we ready to go?" Yuki asked in feather-light tone.

"Take us halfway there; the enemy might have another Blessed One of Hecate who could sense your spell." Neji commanded.

"Yes, captain." Yuki said as a large rune-covered circle not unlike the ones you see witches cast in the movies, encompassed the five of them with a wave of her arm, and there was a sudden lurch before they found themselves in the middle of the forest.

Sakura gaped, "How did you—"

"I have a Blessing for spell-casting," Yuki cut her off bluntly and seemed to look her in the eye.

Yuki's snow-white eyes were unnerving.

"How long have you been blind?" Sakura suddenly asked.

"I've been blind for a few months already, it happened instantly. The same time I got my full mark, I couldn't see anything anymore." Yuki replied casually.

"And nobody noticed?" Sakura asked, her astonishment rang clear in her voice.

"No one even expected it, the ones who know only know because I told them. I used illusions to hide my all-white eyes. Then I started using awareness and perception spells so that I wouldn't bump into any walls and fall into any ditches," Yuki said.

"Alright, the enemy is at least two miles south. We—" Neji gestured at Sasuke, Naruto and himself, "will go ahead, and you two—" Neji now glanced at both Yuki and Sakura, his lilac eyes unnerving in the dark, "will need to trail us from a safe distance. Remember, if there are more enemies than we can handle, find a way to call for more backup. Our goal is to totally eliminate the enemy, am I clear?"

The boys and Yuki nodded while Sakura answered with a small "yes".

"Let's go." Neji commanded and he started running east with Naruto and Sasuke flanking him.

Yuki faced Sakura as she fished in the pouch tied to her hip. She brought out a small ornate vial filled to the brim with swirling purple gas.

"Just in case I can't protect you, take this," she pressed the small vial into Sakura's hand,.

"When you're in danger, crush it and run. The gas it emits is a very potent poison. "

Suddenly, a twig snapped, and the Yuki noticed the presence of multiple people.

Yuki pointed up and Sakura immediately understood. _We're going up._

A wave of Yuki's hand resulted in a small ruffle of wind that lifted them both up gently onto a thick branch. Yuki counted the barely hidden enemies, there were thirty of them, and she cursed under her breath.

"Are there too many of them?" Sakura whispered in horror.

"You better get your bow and arrow." Yuki said grimly, "You don't have to kill them at all; I'll take care of that. Just make sure that they don't get away, understand?"

Sakura nodded then readied herself and pulled out three arrows which she shot simultaneously, each of them hit their mark.

"Keep firing." Yuki said and in her cupped hands, balls of purple fire formed at her fingertips and she flung them down one by one, knocking off most of those who were trying to knock down the tree.

"What are you doing? You could knock the tree down!" Sakura hissed while continuously shooting arrows.

"Have a bit of faith in my abilities." Yuki hissed back.

"Do you have any larger spells?" Sakura asked.

"A few…but I can't cast them here. They would topple the other trees."

Sakura paused for a moment and wiped the sweat from her brow. She felt around at her back. "I have three arrows left."

"Then let's make them count." Yuki answered, heavily panting. She stopped flinging mini fireballs and cast a spell on Sakura's remaining arrows. "Now, fire them, but be careful, these arrows will fly _through _the body you shoot them at."

Sakura aimed and shot. She watched the arrow become so small that she could barely see it then continued watching as it flew straight through one guy's knee and the next guy's thigh. It lodged itself in the arm of the fifth guy it hit. The remaining men kept trying to climb the tree they were in.

"Damn it. I can't figure out what they're doing! They have no strategy, no attack pattern!" Yuki ranted.

"They're just like mindless zombies." Sakura commented as she let the second arrow fly.

"Zombies? What…oh, no…" Yuki said with dread seeping in her voice.

"What?" Sakura asked. Yuki kept staring straight ahead, her blind eyes focusing on something far away.

"Listen to me. I'll cast a teleportation spell on you. You have to focus on Tsunade's office. If you don't, you might get transported somewhere else. Find someone. Tell them that the information is faulty. You need to hurry. Tell them to send as much backup as possible. Understand?" Yuki said urgently as she launched more and more fireballs below.

"Why? What's happened?" Sakura asked hurriedly.

"NOW! Focus!" Yuki yelled before another spell-circle tattoo floated up from her arm. It grew and encompassed only Sakura. Sakura closed her eyes and pictured Tsunade's office, and recalled every single detail about it that she could remember. She felt the lurch and when she opened her eyes, Tsunade was standing over her with worry marring her features.

"Where are the others?" She asked.

"Yuki is still in the forest, halfway to the border. I don't know where the others are. The information was faulty. She says to send as much backup as you can as soon as possible," Sakura reported.

Tsunade presses a button under her desk. Within seconds, three teachers appear, Kakashi and Asuma, both dressed in black, and Kurenai who had a white and scarlet dress with black accents.

Tsunade raised a brow, "Where's Gai?"

"He called in sick today." Kakashi replied.

"Back to business then, team Hyuuga was sent to eliminate infiltrators at the southern border. Apparently, the information was faulty—they were outnumbered. Your mission is to complete theirs."

"Understood, ma'am." Kakashi answered straight away. He was about to jump out the window when Sakura stood up, "I need more arrows. I'm going with them."

Tsunade stood up and retrieved an armful of arrows from a hidden compartment in a nearby bookshelf which she gave Sakura, "I'm counting on you to find them and bring them back alive."

"Alright." Kakashi answered as he scooped Sakura up and carried her in his arms as he jumped out the window.

"Neji, Naruto and Sasuke went ahead, they were supposed to take on the enemy and Yuki and I were back up in case something went wrong. The plan was for me and Yuki to follow the boys from a safe distance, however, before we could, we were surrounded by the enemy squadrons. Yuki used her spell to lift us up into a tree and we fought from there. When she noticed that the enemy had no pattern, no strategy, she seemed to have come to a conclusion on why the enemy was like so. She then ordered me to call for backup and here I am now." Sakura whispered to Kakashi while clinging to his back for dear life as he sped through the forest faster than what was humanly possible.

"Were they mundane or Blessed?" Kakashi muttered softly, one can never be sure about who's listening.

"If they were Blessed, then they were incredibly weak, and they didn't show any kind of battle training. I'd say they're mundane." Sakura whispered back.

"Kakashi, there's blood on the ground." Kurenai noted before she melted back into a tree.

Sure enough, when Sakura glanced at the ground, there was a reddish glint to it.

Within seconds, the small group reached a bloody clearing littered with dead (and dying) men. The branch she was standing on with Yuki earlier was covered in arrows.

"Yuki! Where is she!" Sakura cried worriedly.

"Let's go, Sakura." Kakashi said as he scooped her up in his arms and started running once more.

"Wait! What about Yuki?" Sakura asked.

"I know where to find her." Kakashi answered confidently.

When they found Yuki and the boys, it took a while before Sakura's mind processed everything in the darkness of the night.

First of all, there were enough bodies to cover a small army.

Second, Naruto was screaming.

Third, Neji was limping.

Fourth, Yuki was bleeding heavily and trying to heal Sasuke.

Fifth, SASUKE WAS DYING ON THE FOREST FLOOR!

"Sasuke!" Sakura cried worriedly as she raced to his side.

"Don't die on me, teme," Naruto, who was kneeling at his side, whispered angrily.

Sakura almost fainted when she saw Sasuke's chest. It was covered with large gashes, and she was sure more than a few of those were fatal.

The glow Yuki's hand started flickering and it went out completely. "This can't be…no, not now!"

_But he can't die, he just can't. I won't let him die._ Sakura thought with increasing confidence. _I won't let him die._

"I WON'T LET HIM DIE!" Everyone was nearly blinded by the bright light that Sakura gave off.

When the bright light faded, Naruto just gaped, and when Sakura glanced down at Sasuke, she gaped too. Even in the dark, she could see that every single wound was gone. Not even a single drop of blood remained.

"Thank the gods," Sakura sighed in relief at the miracle she had just witnessed.

"You did it, Sakura-chan! You're Blessing saved Sasuke. You're a miracle healer." Naruto said as he hugged Sakura fiercely.

Kakashi sighed in relief; his favorite student was no longer on the brink of death.

Suddenly, all Sakura wanted to do was sleep. She welcomed the blackness that overcame her.

* * *

><p><strong>I want to announce a few things: <strong>

**First: Thank you for taking some of your precious time to read this.**

**Second: I will be updating every Wednesday or Thursday, depending on which time zone you're in.**

**Third: I may only respond to _some_ of your reviews, but that does not mean that I don't appreciate all of you!  
><strong>

**Okay...**

**dark. angel.0818** - ***_shifts eyes_* Girl, you weren't supposed to say that. But I gues the cat's out of the bag now. _For everyone's knowledge, I DO pre-type my chapters, that way I can ensure that I can keep posting._ And, dear cousin, I FLUFF 'YA!.**

**MichiiHaru-Chan - The reason why they were blunt and straighttforward is because when you ask the Blessed about their Blessing, it's like asking someone when their birthday is. No one really beats around the bush about that.**

**BriBri - As I have mentioned, I pre-type my chapters. The description of the rooms is in the next chapter, and so I hope you have enough patience to wait a week more.**

**Everyone, please, do review! I really need the appreciation! :3**


	4. Chapter 3 Night Life

**Lost Paradise**

**Chapter 3**-**Night Life**

All five of the teens were in the infirmary, even Sasuke, who was not wounded in any way.

"You should start taking better care of yourself," Kakashi scolded Yuki, who was lying on a bed stained with blood from the wound on her arm.

"Yes, I know. But I needed to save my energy. I can't be too drained." Yuki answered as she wrapped a clean bandage around her arm.

"The problem with you being nocturnal is that we can't track what you're doing because you go out at midnight." Kakashi teased then suddenly kept quiet as Tsunade stormed into the infirmary and confronted Neji, who was lying down on the last bed, farthest from the door.

"What happened out there, Hyuga? How could there have been an army out there without us knowing?" Tsunade asked.

"From what I've learned, Grass has a Blessed of Hermes who teleported them there. At first, there were only five of them, like what was reported. Apparently, they found out that we've awakened another double-Blessed and called for reinforcements. They were planning on taking Sakura." Neji answered wearily.

"But how did they get mundanes to fight? From what I know, those were mostly mundanes." Tsunade asked, rubbing her temples.

"I don't—" Neji began, but Yuki, who was sitting on the sofa with Kakashi, cut him off.

"They were most likely under the influence of a Blessed of Aphrodite. They were completely loyal to their 'lady.'"

"And how did you find that out?" Tsunade said, raising a brow.

"You can go ask. There are probably a few still alive. I finished them off as much as I could, but it was kind of difficult because even though Sakura shot a lot of them, she didn't kill anyone out there." Yuki answered.

"I seriously suggest sending a clean-up crew ASAP." Naruto said quickly.

"And with all due respect, Tsunade-sama, you shouldn't have let her come with us. I know she saved Sasuke-nii's life, but she wouldn't have had to if she didn't come with us in the first place." Yuki said to Tsunade.

"I must agree with Yuki, Tsunade-sama. Uchiha got fatally wounded because he was ambushed while he blocked another attack that was meant for Sakura." Neji said.

"If I didn't, she wouldn't have discovered her healing Talent." Tsunade replied.

"But she would have, later. She could have been _killed_ out there, Baa-chan. The enemy, they had an archer with them, a Blessed of Artemis." Naruto said.

"If I had got her out of there a second later she would have a dozen arrows sticking out of her now and she wouldn't even have had enough time to blink before she died." Yuki said.

"Plus, as a double-Blessed," Neji sighed wearily, "other nations would be after her. She's in enough danger as is."

"But Sasuke is double-Blessed as well, and you have no qualms with me sending him out

"He can handle himself, Tsunade-sama." Kakashi suddenly said.

"Please. Don't send her on missions with us. I am _begging_ you. She's weak and vulnerable, and we can't always watch her. It's only been a single mission and look what happened!" Yuki pleaded.

Tsunade remained silent. She sighed as she stood up, "Exactly. It's only been one mission. Give her some time to adapt. Besides, you shouldn't speak so harshly of someone who's in the room and may be listening as we speak."

All three of them stayed quiet as Tsunade stood up and strode out of the infirmary.

Sakura stayed still until Tsunade got out then she suddenly sat up, startling the other four conscious occupants of the room.

She fixed her teary gaze on Yuki's unnerving eyes. "Did you mean that? That I am a liability? Well, excuse me, but this is my first mission and you think I'm _incompetent_!"

"Face it, Sakura! It may be your first mission, and that's only because you insisted on going. If you hadn't none of this would have happened!" Yuki hissed, gradually raising her voice.

"If this is about Sasuke-"

"No, this is not about Sasuke! This is about your damn need to fit in with us and your inability to kill! Don't you realize that _you_ could have gotten killed earlier?" Yuki said, cutting her off.

Sakura's face expressed her shock clearly. "But when I mentioned it you didn't seem to disapprove."

"Because the situation wasn't the same- going up against five enemies is different from going against five hundred! I thought that you would change your mind, but _no_, you still went and stuck to that little belief of yours and you almost got killed!"

"Killing isn't a thing that I would like to do, _ever_. It's _wrong_, Yuki! Those people have families, friends…someone who cares about them! How could you just go ahead and kill them!" Sakura screamed.

"They knew what they were risking, Sakura. There's no excuse not to kill them, they'll die anyway. Killing is just speeding up the process." Yuki answered.

"Is that what you tell yourself, Yuki? Killing isn't bad? Killing isn't evil and immoral and _wrong_? Wouldn't you care if someone you care for gets killed?"

"When you're on the battlefield, nothing else matters but the fight at hand. When a man tries to kill you with a giant sword, you won't think about anything else but staying alive. Everything else comes later. That's how it always has been, and always will be." Yuki said fiercely.

"That may be so, but there are ways to incapacitate someone without killing." Sakura answered back.

"Suit yourself, I won't argue about this anymore. It's getting late and I don't have time for this." Yuki said before getting up and striding out of the infirmary.

* * *

><p>"So you're telling me that you and Yuki just had an argument then she went off on her own?" Sasuke, who was sitting on the bed, said disbelievingly, "And that was three hours ago, and she hasn't come back, and you can't find her." He then rubbed his temples, he just recovered from a near-death experience, woke up at three in the morning, and then he finds out his cousin is missing because she had an argument with his hopefully soon-to-be girlfriend.<p>

"She'll come back…probably." Kakashi said with his nose buried in a small orange book.

"And if she doesn't, then at least we know she can handle herself." Neji added.

Sasuke simply said, "Did you guys think of checking the park?"

"Oh, good point. We'll go." Kakashi said while dragging Naruto out with him.

Neji simply got out and followed. Before he walked out of the door, he looked Sasuke in the eye then glanced at Sakura.

Sasuke got the message. '_Talk to her. _'

Sasuke approached Sakura— carefully, because he was aware of how…delicate a female could be.

She had a blank expression on her face, and when she looked at him, he just froze up. Sakura interrupted his train of thought by saying, "I think Yuki is right, I shouldn't have gone on that mission with you."

That was ridiculous. "I wouldn't even be alive and breathing now if you weren't there earlier."

She shook her head, "No, you would have. Neji said that you got hit when you tried to take out someone aiming for **me**."

And he would gladly do it again for Sakura— he would do anything to keep her safe. But he can't tell her that— she'd think that he's a romantic sap, and we can't have that, can we?

Instead, he asked her, "What exactly did Yuki tell you?"

Sakura then broke down and started sobbing, it was a challenge to make out what she was saying with all the sobs, but he understood most of it. The reason why Yuki said that stuff…honestly, how could the others not have noticed?

So while awkwardly rubbing her back, (awkwardly because no girl has ever come to me crying before. Even Yuki thought it was a bad idea.) He comfortingly told her, "She doesn't hate you, and didn't mean to hurt you when she said those stuff. She was just jealous."

Then Sakura looked at him with those large teary eyes and asked, "Of me? Why would she be jealous of _me_?"

He took a deep breath and answered her, "Because, she was awakened early, so by the time she was thirteen, she was fully trained. The whole thing was wrong. There _are_ organizations that are strong enough to rival Konoha. It turns out that a classmate of hers was a spy for one of them. He was her best friend. She was ordered to kill him. You must have heard of it; the mundane police found out about it because the body was later found in the school's garden."

Sakura nodded. It happened four years ago, one of her classmates was found buried in the school's garden and so school was canceled for a week after that.

"She refused to obey orders at first but the higher ups threatened to kill her family. She had to fight him and she won. She hasn't recovered from that. She doesn't feel like its' fair that you got an option when she didn't."

"I can't imagine going through that. In retrospect, it was a smart decision for the elders to choose Yuki, but it wasn't fair for her…" Sakura said quietly before fresh tears sprung from her eyes for the injustice girl who just hurt her feelings had gone through.

He wrapped an arm around her. "Sakura."

"Yes, Sasuke-kun?"

"Thanks for saving my life earlier." Sasuke mumbled. Sakura silently leaned into his warm embrace.

"Is something happening? I mean, I'm new to all this, but isn't it strange for Grass to send a whole army just to get me?"

"I don't know. Tsunade is still investigating." He answered truthfully.

"Sometimes, I wish that we weren't involved in all this, that we could just live normally as normal people." Sakura blurted.

"Aa. And yet we wouldn't trade this for anything in the world." Sasuke agreed.

* * *

><p>Yuki slit her arm with a blade and watched with morbid fascination as the blood pooled into a small puddle at her feet. She muttered a small incantation and watched as the blood seeped into the ground and white smoke curled around her and took the form of a man who was completely white, from his hair and his eyes to his skin and his clothes. He looked young, about her age. And there was something about him, be it the faint glow he radiated or the soft smile he gave her, that made her breathless.<p>

"Sai." She greeted him.

"Yuki." He nodded.

"You should stop doing this. It isn't healthy for you to use so much your blood for something like this," Sai berated her.

"The summoning spell requires a blood sacrifice," She replied, "And besides, I missed you."

"Yes, it has been a while, hasn't it?" He murmured distantly.

"I did promise that I would only do the summoning once a month." Yuki said, before locking Sai in her warm embrace, but of course, he felt ice cold. Souls have no life and therefore, no warmth.

Sai pressed his chilly lips to her forehead. "You smell of death. Have you been on a mission?"

"Just a small one, there's nothing to worry about." Yuki said softly before she asked, "So how did I do this time? How long can you stay?"

"You're doing better than before; I can stay a full twelve hours now. I can only hope you aren't practicing on your own." Sai said with a small smile before frowning at the gash on her arm. "Yuki-"

"Go ahead," Yuki cut him off and raised her arm to him, "I guess I owe you much more than these few hours of life once a month."

"No, this is already more than I could ever ask for." He said before bringing his lips to the wound. Yuki winced as he drank her blood, it stung, very much, at the same time she watched him as he grew more and more substantial…more _human_. His hair turned black, his clothes were now black and red, and his skin was still extremely pale, but not abnormally white.

He could almost be human, she decided, except for his eyes, which were as wholly black as hers were white.

"Are you sure you've had enough?" Yuki asked shakily once he stopped.

"Yes." He caught her in his arms just before she fell, she always tries to give him more than she must, and loosing so much blood is too much even for her to take.

"Put her down!" A flash of yellow suddenly appeared in front of Sai, who just glanced at him before clutching protectively Yuki to his chest and disappearing.

* * *

><p>Naruto blinked once.<p>

Then he blinked twice.

What the hell had just happened? He could have sworn Yuki was right there on the ground, unconscious and held by some guy he didn't know, and then the next second, they both disappeared.

The strangest thing was the man's eyes, which were totally black, no iris, no pupil, just total darkness.

"Did you find her?" Kakashi asked as he and Neji emerged from the bushes.

"I don't know. I think I did," Naruto said, "Some guy was carrying her then they both suddenly disappeared."

"I…see," Kakashi replied before sniffing the air. "I smell blood. Neji, did she completely heal herself earlier?" he asked in a daze.

"I don't think so." Neji said.

* * *

><p><strong>Omake- One of the Perks<strong>

Konoha Academy is kind of _fancy_, Sakura mused as she wandered down the quiet halls, not exactly your normal school. The floors were carpeted, crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling, and there were busts of deceased principals and directors scattered around.

From the outside, it looks like…a Victorian mansion. On the inside it looked like a museum…or maybe a five-star hotel, complete with the indoor pool.

'This is probably one of the perks of being Blessed.' Sakura thought to herself. They have a whole wing to themselves. Each one of them has a room in the west wing, and each of the rooms comes with its own bathroom, hot tub, and an amazing view of the gardens and the nearby forest. Not to mention the designer furniture and the free delicious food everyday.

And, as Sakura has recently learned, they have underground training grounds and weapon vaults.

The strangest thing is, none of this comes from tuition the students pay, it isn't expensive, and the students are mostly middle-class with a few exceptions such as Hinata, Sasuke and Neji, and a few others, who are 'filthy, stinkin' rich' as Naruto puts it.

The truth is that the money comes from doing missions. Apparently, there are a few (high-class) mundanes that hire the Blessed to do some chores for them, such as cleaning, mowing the lawn, taking out the trash, and more often than not, spying and assassinating.

Sakura stopped her musings as she recovered from almost falling down the stairs. She pressed her thumb to the scanner and heard the satisfactory 'click' of the lock of her door before she quietly slipped through the door of her room and promptly collapsed on her bed.

Her room was once a lot less grand than the teachers' rooms, not because of lack of funds (Sasuke offered to cover all expenses) but because of the fact that she didn't want to decorate it. Everyone else however, made it so that she didn't need to. The only thing she did in an effort to add a bit of personality to her room was painting the walls a dark chocolate and installing lights that could be dimmed to a dull orange color, giving the room a cozy feel.

Of course, Ino (who wasn't as rich as Sasuke, but still rich nonetheless) promptly bought a full set of sakura-pink silk sheets and matching fluffy towels. And Sasuke got a few pieces of furniture (hand-picked by Mikoto, his mother) to match the new color of the rooms.

Sakura protested to them spending so much money on her but they would hear nothing of it and continued to keep adding bits and pieces to her room. By then, the mutually agreed on but still unspoken theme of the room was 'sakura'.

By the end of the week, she ended up with a solid mahogany bookshelf that had intricate carvings of sakura branches, and a small table which is actually a gorgeous aquarium complete with all sorts of exotic fishes and corals with a large sheet of glass on top. (Naruto's idea, it worked though— she only had to lift the glass to feed the fishes about twice or thrice a week) The tank itself had decorations on its bottom corners made from crystals. There were sakura blossoms made from rose quartz, leaves made from jade, all attached to branches made of tiger's eye.

A dresser made of dark wood with her name and hundreds of sakura blossoms carved into the drawers (both it and the bookshelf were custom made for her, courtesy of Sasuke).

She also had lots of stylish pink ceramic vases in all sorts of shapes and designs which came with pre-arranged artificial flowers (so she didn't have to water them), all from Ino. The smallest one is now permanently attached to the top of her aquarium-table so that she didn't have to worry about breaking it while she fed the fishes.

Yuki even offered to charm the room so now it always smells of sakura blossoms, with a bit of a woody scent. And she also gave Sakura a few bonsai plants which Sakura immediately positioned above the bookshelf and outside, on the balcony, and on the bathroom countertop.

Her favorite of all of the furniture is the canopy bed which was a joint project of Sasuke and Ino. It had all four thick posts made of mahogany and carved to look like the trunks of sakura trees and the canopy itself is made of a translucent shimmering pink cloth with layers upon layers of artificial sakura blossoms sewn on the top and a few more blossoms were randomly sewn to the curtains themselves. All in all, it gave the illusion of sleeping under a grove of Sakura trees.

Now, her room looks (and smells) like the indoor version of a fairytale garden, all it was missing was the soil and the grass...and the gazebo.

Some of the other students' rooms each have a sort of theme to them, and so they have become well-known attractions with the whole student population. It is considered a privilege to be able to enter the rooms and even more of a privilege to actually live in one.

Naruto had a ramen themed room, complete with bowl shaped furniture, curtains that mimicked noodles and pillows that were shaped like toppings. His room had a microwave and three large cupboards fully stocked with instant ramen. His room even _smelled_ like ramen. Also he had a pet fox (nine-tailed mutant fox, Sakura reminded herself) called Kyubi.

Sasuke's room was dark. It seemed to recreate the night sky. He had black pillows, black silk sheets, sleek black and silver furniture, and black carpeting. The amazing thing about his room is the hundreds of (expensive) sparkling Swarovski crystals hung at different lengths from the ceiling with transparent string. Yuki charmed the crystals so that they twinkle like real stars, since Sasuke's secret hobby is stargazing.

Neji's room has more of an 'intellectual' vibe to it. It had cream walls covered by oak shelves containing books of every kind and many large maps covered his study table. To their group of friends, his room might as well have been a library. His bed was pushed into the far corner of the room, as if it was supposed to be as inconspicuous as possible. A large and beautifully ornate gilded cage was left open and empty in the corner as his pet dove was left free to roam around inside and outside through the open window and it came and went as it pleased, thus, leaving his room dropping-free.

Yuki's room was unique to her tastes. The room had black walls and royal purple carpets. She had manikins dressed in elaborate ball gowns and whimsical costumes lining a wall and tall bookshelves with fictional, fantasy and supernatural novels lining the other. A large white woolen picnic blanket and numerous dramatic multi-colored pillows (some of them had beaded fringes and some even had gold tassels) made her 'reading nook' in the corner. Her bed had snow-white sheets and glittering dark purple pillows. She had a long granite table that sparkled under her crystal chandelier with a fortune-teller's crystal ball sitting on top.

'_Well,_' Sakura thought as she drifted off to sleep, '_I guess one of the perks of being Blessed is getting your dream room._'

* * *

><p><strong>Hello to all my readers. Thank you for reading this chapter of Lost Paradise. Please review and give me some feedback. I'M GETTING DESPERATE...well, not really, but still.<strong>

**I want to note down a few things.**

**1. Yuki may sound like a biotch, but in truth she's just brutally honest. And apparently she's the jealous type. But her boyfriend is dead. And in case you're wondering, she isn't suicidal, okay?  
><strong>

**2. Kyubi here is a Shih-Tzu dog sized nine-tailed mutant (not demon) fox. He accidentally ingested some Blessed of Hephaestus' experimental concoction, thus he was genetically mutated. Naruto found him in the forest and adopted him. He now lives in a pet bed shaped like a ramen bowl. Seriously.  
><strong>


	5. Chapter 4 Training Gone Weird

**Lost Paradise**

**Chapter** **4- Training Gone Weird**

Sakura stood up and stretched then glanced at her watch. Her extended nap had lasted for five hours; it was 10 in the evening already. She had been subjected to fierce training after Yuki and Neji interrogated a sole survivor of the failed invasion from three weeks ago.

True to their suspicions, word had indeed leaked out that Konoha has a new double-Blessed kid.

The man grudgingly spit out that his orders were to locate the new double-Blessed girl and find out what she could do. Later, the orders changed to 'Kill both of the double-Blessed kids and destroy Konoha while you're at it.' Luckily, they had caught the army before it had the chance to strike back.

A lot of things have changed since that battle. Yuki has become distant, deliberately avoiding all of them, even Sasuke, with whom she used to be rarely seen without.

Sakura has now started developing her healing Blessing with Lady Tsunade, who wass also Blessed by Apollo. It's been coming along really well.

As for her archery Blessing, she spends an hour or two after school hitting targets in the gym with Sasuke. She's better at it than he is now, being able to hit targets that move too fast for mundies to even see.

School was great since Sasuke informed her of the fact that none of the Blessed did their homework. The teacher's just automatically gave them top marks, no questions asked.

Hm…no wonder Naruto passed all his subjects with flying colors.

"Sakura! Open up! We convinced Tsunade to give us all permission to skip school tomorrow _and_ she also cancelled all your training sessions with her so we're going to go sparring tonight and you're coming with us whether you want to or not!" Naruto screamed while pounding at the door like a deranged lunatic, interrupting Sakura's thoughts.

Sakura simply groaned before trudging up to the door only to be met by Naruto in a neon-orange-and-black tracksuit with the top half zipped, showing the black tee he wore underneath.

"It's ten p.m., Naruto. Can't we just act like normal people and watch a horror movie?" Sakura groaned, "And Ino's staying tonight, she just went home to get some clothes."

"Come on, Sakura-chan! Ino can wait a bit, can't she? And don't you want to see if your combat training with Kakashi paid off? The teme and Neji are waiting outside already."

Sakura raised a brow, "And Yuki?"

"I'm going to go get her right now, so you get ready and wear something warm, it's chilly tonight." Naruto said before scurrying down the hall to Yuki's room.

Sakura sighed before changing out of her school uniform into her black jogging pants and a pink tank top.

"Sakura! Let's go!" Naruto yelled at the door.

"Coming!" Sakura answered back as she grabbed her bow and quiver from the back of her closet and a black hoodie to keep warm before running out.

Naruto grinned at her before nodding at Yuki.

Yuki stood there casually in a white baby tee and scarlet jogging pants with her dark purple cardigan draped across her shoulders. With a glance at Sakura, she cast a teleportation spell and in a second, they were all standing in the middle of the school's garden.

* * *

><p>"Where're Sasuke and Neji?" Sakura asked, whipping her head around to check her surroundings.<p>

"Boo." Sasuke's voice suddenly whispered from behind her, causing her to jump and scream.

Naruto burst into laughter and Neji, who appeared beside Yuki, smirked. Even Yuki laughed. And that was strange, because she hadn't laughed around them at all these past weeks.

"The ice queen laughed!" Naruto said in mock surprise.

"Who're 'ya calling ice queen?" Yuki tossed back, "Is that a challenge?"

"Why yes it is, milady." Naruto answered.

Sasuke smirked and grabbed Sakura before tossing her on his back and climbing a tree, reminding Sakura of a vampire movie she had watched with Ino. Now if only Sasuke drank animal blood and sparkled in the sun...well, maybe not. "This is the best view you could get." He whispered to her once he set her down on the top branch. Sakura turned her head to find Neji and found him in the tree opposite to them.

Yuki and Naruto circled each other in the center of the clearing.

"Any rules?" Yuki asks with a feral grin as she tossed her cardigan on a nearby tree branch.

"Anything goes, but no killing. First blood." Naruto says before he charges.

"What does Naruto do?" Sakura asked Sasuke.

"Well, he has the Blessing of fire." Sasuke answered as a column of fire bursts from Naruto's fist, "And like we told you before, he spontaneously combusts at any time. He doesn't get hurt…much, but whoever's near him is practically barbecue, so we try to avoid staying too close."

"Wouldn't Yuki die if that happens?" Sakura gasps.

"Just watch." Sasuke says.

And so Sakura watches as Yuki with a column of fire heading toward her, and right when she would have gotten hit, a purple barrier flickered in front of her, shielding her from the heat.

Naruto then came charging at her with flaming punches and kicks while Yuki dodged and blocked with a smaller version of her barrier which she dispelled right away.

Punch. Dodge. Roundhouse kick. Block with shield. Dispell shield. And the cycle went on, with Naruto on the offensive and Yuki on the defensive. Soon, they were both high in the air, Naruto's feet shooting flames like a rocket, and Yuki standing on thin air

"Why aren't you attacking? Am I too hot to handle?" Naruto taunted.

"In your dreams, you flaming pimp." Yuki answered, before a spell circle glowed from beneath Naruto's feet. Naruto stopped moving.

"No fair. Paralyzing spell." Naruto whined.

"Why not? You said it yourself, anything goes." Yuki smirked as she slowly floated towards him and pricked him on the back of his hand with a shard of her purple glass that she conjured, "There, I win. Now, who's up next?"

"Uhm…Yuki?" Sakura says unsurely before pointing at Naruto.

"Oh, right." She waved her hand at Naruto. The spell circle disappeared and Naruto tumbled to the ground comically, "Well? Someone has to challenge someone else. So the rules say."

"You have rules for this?" Sakura raised a brow.

"Well, we do, but we don't usually follow any except the golden rule." Naruto answered.

"Golden rule?"

"No killing your opponent under any circumstances." Naruto said then grinned, and you could just see a light bulb go on in his head. "How about Sakura versus Sasuke?"

"Perfect!" Yuki clapped enthusiastically. "Okay, Sakura. Now you have to use any means necessary to beat Sasuke, or at least render him unable to attack. Feel free to use any means possible, but we'll be watching you so please avoid making out." Yuki was positively bouncing, "And Sasuke," she added, "Please try to control your raging hormones. I am your cousin and almost-sister. I really do not want to see you with your girlfriend."

Sakura felt herself turn red as she heard Neji's snicker and Naruto's loud laughter.

Sasuke growled as he leaped down from a tree and glared at Yuki, who was now sitting under another tree munching on an apple.

"I'm just kidding. Relax. But seriously, try to attack her. She's not made of glass." Yuki said as she takes a bite out of the apple.

Neji stood in between the two, "Ready, set, fight!"

Sasuke started charging at Sakura, she dodged his punches and his kicks. 'Any means possible, hmm? Maybe I should follow Yuki's advice. It wouldn't hurt to try, probably. After all, what's a little kiss between friends?'

'Wait. What the hell am I thinking! Sasuke might not like me that way.' She argued with the annoying voice in her head.

'But he actually likes you, can't you read the signals?'

'Then I'll ask him later, not now. I have a fight to concentrate on.' Sakura told herself before dodging a strike from Sasuke's sword.

"You need to move faster, Sakura! Focus!" Yuki screamed from the sidelines.

Sakura dodged as fast as she could, jumping to the left, rolling to the right, and leaping up and crouching down, until Sasuke pinned her to a tree.

"I got you. You lose." Sasuke smirked.

"Not quite." Sakura cocked her fist and punched his gut as hard as she could. She knocked the wind out of Sasuke.

Taking advantage of his weakened state, she grabbed a discarded arrow from the ground and knocked the sword out of his hands, and slammed him to a tree with one hand pressing the point of the arrow threateningly to his neck

"And Sakura wins!" Naruto cheers.

"You got owned, Sasuke." Yuki said sympathetically while patting his back. He growled at her.

"Better luck next time, teme." Naruto said to Sasuke before turning to Sakura, "That was pretty good for a newbie, Sakura-chan."

"Yeah," Yuki agreed, "In a year or two, she'll be as good as us."

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean." Sakura said.

"I don't mean to burst your bubble, but Sasuke went easy on you."

"Easy how?"

"He's been training for two years now, and his blessing lets him control thunder and go invisible. You think you can compete with _**that**_? Anyway, he fought fair and square but he underestimated you a bit. See? You didn't even break a sweat." Yuki said

"In my opinion, all she lacks is field experience." Neji observed.

"I guess so. I mean, experience does make a lot-" Yuki paused mid-sentence to dodge a dagger which seemingly appeared from nowhere.

All of them slid into their battle stances.

"Show yourself!" Neji commanded. Five men dressed in black appeared.

The tension-filled air disappeared almost immediately.

"Great. Who are you people? The men in black?" Naruto asked sarcastically.

"They're spies wearing black? That's so cliché." Yuki commented.

"Um, guys? There are enemies in front of us. Focus?" Sakura pleaded.

"Right." Yuki and Naruto said simultaneously.

One of the men stepped forward, "Hand over the girl and no one gets hurt." He said, pointing at Sakura.

"Oh wow, seriously, cliché." Yuki commented, forgetting about being serious.

Neji rolled his eyes in exasperation and charged at the men, instantly killing the man who spoke.

"Sakura, could you take one of them out? We need one alive for interrogation." Yuki asked.

Sakura sighed and shot an arrow at one of them. It lodged itself in his chest.

"You punctured a lung." Yuki said amusedly, "What happened to no killing?"

"He's still alive…isn't he?" Sakura said asked, did she go a bit too far?

"Don't worry, princess, he's fine. Probably bleeding to death, but otherwise, he's fit as a fiddle." Yuki smirked mockingly before a spell circle glowed to life from beneath the enemies' feet. _"Paralyze!"_

Sakura suddenly remembered something. "Come on, Sasuke! We have to hurry this up! Ino'll be here any minute now!"

"Relax. We'll be done in a minute," Sasuke said calmly. His fingers were actually buzzing with electricity.

"Sakura? Sakura! Where are you?" A feminine voice called out.

"Shit, it's Ino! Quick, get rid-"Sakura pleaded but was stopped by a loud shriek.

"Oh my god! What the hell happened here?" Ino screamed, glancing from Yuki's outstretched hands to the glowing rotating purple spell circle to Sasuke's hands which were buzzing with blue sparks of electricity.

"We're fucked." Yuki murmured.

Ino stood there in shock.

"You're all freaks…Freak, sneak." A small smile spread on Ino's face.

"What?" Yuki raised a brow. Shouldn't Ino be running away by now?

Ino laughed.

Naruto edged closer to Yuki as Ino laughed louder. "Is she going mad?"

"I can't believe it, all this time," Ino laughed harder, "You're all freaks lime me! Me, knee, key…"

"Okay Ino, you have to- wait, what?" Sakura paused in shock. Did she hear her right?

"Alright, Ino, honey, you have to sit down." Yuki said kindly without lowering her hands, "Sasuke, finish these guys off now, so we can all sit down and have a nice chat about Ino."

Sasuke glanced at Ino who was grinning widely to herself rocking in a fetal position, muttering, "I'm not alone. I'm not alone. I'm not alone." and made-up words that rhyme with 'alone' over and over again. He raised his hand and bolts of lighting repeatedly zapped their captives one by one.

Meanwhile, Neji, Naruto and Sakura gathered around Ino, deciding on what to do with her.

"Frankly, she's gone nuts." Naruto muttered.

"What do we do?" Sakura asked.

"Have Yuki wipe her memory?" Naruto suggested.

"No, we have to find out what she was talking about first…then we take her to Tsunade." Sakura said.

"If you haven't noticed, she isn't exactly _stable_ right now." Naruto said, cringing at Ino.

"Can't Sakura's healing Blessing calm her down?" Neji wondered out loud.

"Well, I can try." Sakura shrugged.

"Ino," Sakura said, "Ino-pig, I need you to calm down," a warm golden light enveloped Sakura's hand.

Sakura rubbed her hand back and forth across Ino's back, as one would do to calm a sobbing child.

Within minutes, Ino was calm enough to think rationally and speak normally.

"Since I was a kid," She began, "I noticed that people listen to me. I ask them to do something for me, and they follow, no questions asked. I figured it was just my natural charm, because, well, it's ME, but it started getting weirder, like one time, I heard everyone's thoughts, but I paid it no mind, telling myself it was just because of the lack of sleep.

"Soon, this weird tattoo of a pair of angel wings appeared on my back. At first it was faint, so I thought it was a trick of the light. But then it got darker. I was too afraid to ask anyone about it." Ino said with her face in an expression that was a cross between relief and hysteria.

"Okay…how about we take Ino to Tsunade, like, right now?" Yuki whispered to Sakura.

"Can you teleport us there?" Sakura whispered back.

"No problem."

"Okay Ino. I need you to take a deep breath. Yuki has magic powers, so she's going to show us a little trick, okay?" Sakura asked slowly.

Ino looked at her strangely. "How old do you think I am? Three? I can handle this."

"Okay. Ready? One. Two. Three." Yuki counted as a spell circle appeared beneath their feet. Ino felt a sudden lurch and suddenly they were outside Tsunade's office. "Uhm.. Tada!" Yuki said after Ino fixed her a measuring glance.

"Okay… so you're a magician." Ino concluded.

"Oh, _yes._" Yuki snickered, "I also do sleepovers and birthday parties. And I can make those annoying boyfriends disappear."

"Not the time, Yuki." Neji warned her.

"Oh, fine." Yuki huffed as Sakura knocked on Tsunade's door.

"Shishou, we need to talk to you about something _very_ urgent."

"Come in." Tsunade's voice said from inside.

"Do you need more arro- Why is she here?" Tsunade asked in surprise. Sakura quickly told her what had happened.

"So you're telling me that some guys attacked you, she discovered you guys fighting then she went nuts."

"Yes." Sakura nodded.

"Well, then let's get this over with." Tsunade sighed before she motioned for Ino to step closer.

"Place both your hands on this crystal ball," Tsunade instructed and she watched intently as the ball shimmered before glowing a full-out pink. "I see, you're a Blessed by Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty. I can't say it's surprising." Tsunade added in monotone.

"Very well, Yamanaka-san will be staying here tonight and we shall see how it progresses."

"What's 'it'?" Ino asked timidly.

"Your mental stability." Tsunade replied dryly and Ino gulped, "All of you are dismissed, except for Yuki."

They all bowed before slipping away quietly. Yuki shifted her weight from one foot to the other.

* * *

><p>"It has come to my attention that you have been hiding one of your abilities."<p>

Yuki gulped.

"Now, I have trusted you for many years, even going as far as to take you under my wing when your parents…passed away." Tsunade spoke facing the window, with her back to Yuki.

"I trusted you not to hide something as important as this. I am very disappointed in you."

"But, Tsunade-sama-"

"I am sorry Yuki, but I have no choice. You have committed a grave crime. I cannot let you continue as is." Tsunade said gravely, "The Akatsuki has requested to form an alliance. We will have an exchange of members. I have put forth your name, and they have approved."

"You would have sent me away even faster if I did tell you before."

"You know I wouldn't have." Tsunade said forcefully.

_'You liar.' _Yuki opened her mouth to protest but shut it quickly before asking in a resigned tone, "Who did they choose?"

"Uchiha Itachi. You should know him very well; he is your cousin after all."

"I see."

"Tomorrow, their representatives will arrive, and after three days you both shall swear an oath on the river Styx, you to remain loyal to Akatsuki, and he to remain loyal to Konoha."

"You know, you should be honored, the Akatsuki do not let just anyone into their ranks." Tsunade said gently.

Yuki took a deep breath before continuing in a detached voice, "Fine. In three days, I shall swear an oath to remain loyal to the Akatsuki. Is there anything else you would want me to do, Tsunade-sama?"

"No, no. You are dismissed. And pack up. You'll be leaving right after you take your oath." Tsunade sighed sadly.

"To where?"

"You're going with them. To Amegakure."

* * *

><p><strong>Hey, it's me again. Yeah. Thank you so MUCH for the feedback. AS OF RIGHT NOW, THIS STORY HAS 25 FAVORITES, I CAN'T BELIEVE IT. As for the reviews however, two reviews only? Really? Why? PLEASE REVIEW, reviews are the blood to my vampire, and I really do want to read the comments. <strong>

**But even so, I will still keep posting chapters every Wednesday or Thursday with or without reviews and I might have a sad little cliche one-shot up by sometime next month, so please REVIEW.**

**And a few important notes:**

**1.) YES. They are effin lucky they don't have to study. But then because of training they don't have time to study.**

**2.) As I had mentioned in the prologue, Yuki was orphaned at the same time when Sasuke's parents got into an accident. She was already awakened at the time though, so she was already living on school grounds.  
><strong>


	6. Chapter 5 New Arrivals

**Lost Paradise**

**Chapter 5**- **New Arrivals (from some foreign place)**

* * *

><p>"Really, Sakura. Five ambushes in a week." Yuki sighed before grabbing one of her shirts, folding it neatly, and tossing it in a large cardboard box, "It's practically in the schedule. Wake up. Eat breakfast. Go to school. Train. Get ambushed by idiots. Haul one home for questioning." She poked her head out of her closet, glancing at Sakura and Ino, making sure that they didn't notice that she was packing up all her clothes. She had given them the excuse that her closet was too full and so she had to keep some stuff to make room.<p>

"It's not like it's my fault they have zero coordination skills whatsoever." Sakura said while chewing on a stick of Pocky, "But the last one was hilarious. I can't believe the nerdy looking guy with the glasses tripped on the tree root."

"So true." Ino smiled. She had been sitting in on the last few ambushes. Actually, she was watching them train and well, the ambushes _always_ happen while they're training.

Suddenly there was a knock at the door and the girls all kept silent.

"Who is it?" Yuki called out loudly.

"It's me!" Naruto's voice came from the other side, "Tsunade wants to see us."

* * *

><p>"As I was saying, you will be accompanied by Akatsuki members everywhere you go. Deidara , Itachi and Sasori will be staying for a few months so they will be posing as students. However, Kisame and Hidan will be leaving in three days, so they will not be attending your classes with you and instead, they will guard the perimeter of the school."<p>

"For now." Naruto added spitefully. He had experienced many injuries inflicted by the people standing before him. He was being restrained on either side by Sasuke and Neji, though both of them have also had their fair share of scars from the Akatsuki as well.

Sakura was confused and so was Ino, they both leaned towards Yuki and Sakura asked softly, "Who are they? And why's Sasuke's brother there?"

"The Akatsuki is this elite mercenary group for hire. Let's just say that we've had a few unpleasant run-ins with them before." A calm Yuki whispered back at Sakura, "Itachi's a member."

"I will hear of no mishaps or complaints from you." She said, glaring at everyone.

"You're all dismissed."

* * *

><p>Once outside of Tsunade's office, the boys seem content with standing and glaring at the Akatsuki while the Akatsuki stood there and met their gaze impassively. Yuki sighed.<p>

"So…" Sakura broke the silence, "Are we going to go do something or do you guys really want to stay standing here like idiots?" Everyone's eyes snapped to Sakura.

"So this is the newbie?" A tall blue man grinned, showing his sharp, pointy teeth, "Can we keep her?" Sakura struggled to remember his name…Kisame? Yeah, Kisame.

"Kisame. Do not provoke them." Itachi, Sasuke's older brother said casually.

"We would appreciate it if you guys stay the _fuck_ away from her." Naruto growled.

"I think we should separate them before it turns serious." Ino whispered to Yuki, the only one who was seemingly unaffected by the presence of the Akatsuki.

"I think you're right." Yuki whispered back, then speaking loudly, addressed the Akatsuki, "Would you guys like a tour of this place? Or maybe I should take you to your rooms?"

"We would prefer it if you showed us to our rooms." Itachi answered.

"No problem." Yuki said as she led the Akatsuki away.

The boys continued glaring at their backs until they turned at a corner, then they all snapped their heads to look at Sakura.

"We want you to stay away from them, Sakura." Sasuke said as he held her hand.

"Yeah, they're dangerous," Naruto agreed.

"…Okay," Sakura said unsurely, they seemed fine to her. "I'm going back to my room now. Goodnight."

* * *

><p>Sakura woke to the buzz of her mobile's alarm. She grabbed the phone roughly and jabbed the snooze button. She then read the screen. 'Akatsuki wll attnd class w us 2day. Wake others up erly.'

'_Alright then, better start preparing.' _She thought to herself.

_**Don't forget to bring that dagger you got last week,**_ her inner voice added.

Sakura showered, got dressed and slipped her dagger in the hidden pocket of her skirt. It was small, but it was better than nothing. She shoved her stuff into her bag; it was black and brown— perfect for camouflage, plus a bit of red, to add some color to it.

Before rushing out of the room, she took a quick glance at the room before swiping her phone from the tabletop and ran down the hall, pounding loudly on Ino's door.

"Ino-pig! Time to get ready."

The door opened a crack before Ino poked her head out, "I'll just meet you downstairs. I still have to put on mascara."

"Okay." Sakura said before moving on to Yuki's room.

The door was opened slowly, revealing Yuki (the real one) dressed in the school uniform. Sakura glanced at the bed to make sure, yep, no one was there.

"Aren't you supposed to be asleep?"

"Today's a special occasion," Yuki half-grinned and half rolled her eyes before pounding on her bathroom door, "It takes half an hour for chicks to shower, not guys, get the hell out of there."

"Fuck you." Hidan's voice was muffled.

"He's been on repeat since like, an hour ago or something." Yuki sighed. "Can I offer you anything? Tea? Coffee?"

Sakura shook her head. "Why is he in your room? Why is he in your _shower_?"

"My dog kinda mistook him this morning for a large piece of albino steak. So I had to heal him." Yuki said.

"You have a dog?"

"Yep. His name's Yami, because he's like, big…and really, really, dark. Like a giant hellhound version of a Labrador. I summon him on occasion."

Sakura simply nodded in response and silently slipped out of the room.

She reached Sasuke's door, which, to Sakura's amusement had a hastily scrawled 'He's single!' on it done in permanent black ink on the metal nameplate. Must be Naruto's doing. She made a mental note to help him scrub it off.

"Sasuke-kun, get up." Sakura said, banging loudly on his door. She laughed as she heard a muffled "oof" and a 'thump' and a groan as Sasuke fell off his bed.

A disheveled Sasuke appeared at the door, "It's still an hour early, Sakura. Why the hell did you wake me up?"

She poked his chest, "The Akatsuki are coming with us, remember?"

Sasuke grunted, groaned, and disappeared back into his room.

Sakura moved on to Naruto's door, "Naruto! Are you ready yet?"

"Just finishing up my ramen, Sakura-chan!"

"Well, hurry up." Sakura said, rolling her eyes.

"Alright, Sakura-chan. Meet you in the lobby."

"Yeah, yeah." Sakura said, rolling her eyes. She strutted out the door and stopped outside Neji's room.

"Neji, are you done getting ready?" She asked while knocking softly.

The door creaked open before Neji stepped out, his school tie hanging loosely and his hair slightly damp.

"I'm going to Sasori and Deidara's room next, would you mind coming with me?" Sakura asked.

Neji nodded with his face twisted into a glare.

'_Boys…'_Sakura scoffed mentally.

After she and Neji finished getting the Akatsuki awake (and checking on Yuki once more, since you can really never be too sure about that Hidan guy), they all went to the school cafeteria and ate breakfast, before getting summoned once more to Tsunade's office.

Tsunade, upon seeing them all come in together, said, "I see you're all getting along well."

To which Yuki and Naruto both muttered under their breaths, "Not quite," earning a giggle from Ino.

"Okay, so a few more people will be arriving soon. Probably during second period or third. They're from Suna," Tsunade said, "Just thought I should warn you in case you may try to knock them senseless."

"Will they be posing as exchange students as well?" Sakura asked.

"Yes. The youngest is in your year while the other two will be a sophomore, like Neji, and a junior. They are to be treated with the highest respect, am I clear?"

"Absolutely." "Crystal." They simultaneously responded.

"Alright. Dismissed."

"I wonder why all these people are coming…" Sakura wondered out loud as they made their way to class.

"Ooh…I have a feeling something big is gonna happen!" Ino squealed.

"Yeah…something big…" Yuki grinned sheepishly before snapping her fingers, "Oh yeah, I almost forgot. I'm taking you guys out to karaoke tomorrow night, my treat, 'mkay?"

Sure's and yeah's were heard before they entered the classroom. Kakashi, their homeroom teacher, was already standing in front.

"He's early!" Naruto exclaimed, "It's a sign of the apocalypse!"

"I can hear you, Mister Uzumaki." Kakashi drawled in the formal, indifferent tone that he used during class, "Take your seat. All of you."

The teens all hurriedly took their seats and hushed up.

"Now as you can see, we have new students." Kakashi continued as all eyes immediately went to Sasori and Deidara, who were sitting in the back. Whispers and swoons erupted from most of the female students as Sasori glanced at them with his aloof expression and Deidara smirked cutely.

"Okay girls, settle down. As you all may have expected, they will be staying in the west wing, which, might I add, is restricted to those who have no business there."

The Blessed teenagers all face-palmed, and most of the female half of the class cheered. _**Terrible**__ choice of words..._

"Now would the new students please come up here to introduce themselves to the class," Kakashi said coolly.

Girls all swooned once more as Sasori and Deidara made their way to the front.

"I am Sasori." Sasori drawled lazily with his hands in his pockets.

"I'm Deidara, un." Deidara greeted with a small wave.

"Perfect. They got the whole female population wrapped around their little fingers." Yuki whispered to Sakura, who was seated beside her, and Ino, who was seated behind Sakura.

"_Most_ of the female population, Yuki," Ino corrected her, "Just most of it, not all."

"It's going to be a long day…" Naruto sighed.

Sasuke and Sakura couldn't help but nod.

* * *

><p>By lunch, their table was swelling with uninvited guests all kissing up to them and begging them to invite them to their rooms in the west wing.<p>

"Can't we go up to your room, Sasuke-kun?" A girl asked. Sasuke quietly edged away from her with a look in his eyes that read, 'I don't even know you!'

"Neji-senpai, we heard that you have an impressive collection of books, may we please go see?" A swarm of girls surrounded Neji.

"Yuki-san, can we go up to your room, please? I heard that you have some gorgeous dresses that you made yourself." Another girl from a different class begged.

"Sorry, my room is kind of off limits right now. It's passage-restrictive." Yuki laughed sheepishly in response.

And the worst part was, even the female upperclassmen were there because, true to Tsunade's warning, the Suna people arrived earlier, and one of them was in Neji's class and the other was in the year above him, but luckily for them, Temari, the eldest of the Suna siblings, was female. Unfortunately, said Suna siblings were all at the west wing, settling in and unpacking for their week long stay here. And Deidara and Sasori were also in the west wing with the other Akatsuki members.

"We have to get out of here." Ino whispered to Sakura.

"Well don't look at me, I'm no public speaker." Sakura whispered back.

Naruto suddenly shot up and ran out of the cafeteria.

"Then again, I guess we don't need one." Sakura said as she ran out of the cafeteria. Better take the chance.

Ino smiled at the girls who were at their table, "Sorry, emergency business." She ran out of the cafeteria as well.

Neji, Sasuke and Yuki all stood up to follow them.

"Can't we help, Sasuke-kun?" The girls began pleading, but Yuki intervened.

"Sorry girls, it's sort of private." Yuki smiled before grabbing both Neji and Sasuke by the wrists and running like hell.

They all met up in Neji's room, seeing as it had the most seating space out of all of their rooms.

"Okay. Well, that was fun." Sakura said sarcastically.

"How about we take the rest of the day off?" Ino suggested, "I mean, you guys do it all the time."

"Yeah, we could do that." Yuki nodded.

Naruto was practically bouncing off the walls, "We could go hunting!"

"Hunting?" Sakura and Ino asked simultaneously, "Isn't that illegal?"

"Oh, _no_. He meant hunting for seashells on the seashore." Yuki answered snickered wickedly.

"You guys really go hunting?" Sakura asked.

"Well, we used to." Naruto answered.

"And we didn't know what to do with the carcasses…"Yuki trailed off.

"On second thought, let's not go hunting." Naruto said.

"How about we go sparring?" Sakura suggested.

"Too tiring." Naruto said immediately shooting down the idea.

"We can ask Tsunade for a relatively simple mission?" Ino suggested.

"That might work." Naruto allowed.

"We all okay with this? Neji? Sasuke?" Yuki asked.

"Hn."

"Hn."

"Then we're all okay with this." Yuki clapped enthusiastically.

* * *

><p>"Well, I have just the mission for you guys. Plus, it lasts only for this afternoon." Tsunade said, smiling deviously. "Iruka's taking the afternoon off, but there's no one to look after the kindergarten kids, so he's requesting for a few people to watch them for a bit. There'll be around thirty kids, and two classes, there are 15 in each. Think you guys can handle this?"<p>

"Oooh. Totally." Ino immediately answered.

"Thirty kids?" Sakura looked unsure. "I don't know…"

"I guess. It's just for the afternoon. We can handle it." Yuki said determinedly.

The males remained silent with looks of horror on their faces.

"We'll take it." Ino said with sparkles in her eyes.

* * *

><p>"And so <em>how <em>old are these kids?" Naruto glanced at the toddlers.

"Well, the kids in the Oak Class are three and the ones in Pine Class are five." Iruka replied. Naruto watched with horror as one kid started gnawing on his own wrist.

"And you handle both of them now, Iruka-sensei?_ At the same time?_" Yuki gaped.

"Yep. It's a big change from teaching third-graders, but nothing too hard."

"How _do_ you watch both classes at the same time?" Sakura raised a brow.

"Well, my Blessing is body duplication, so I can actually be in two places at once." Iruka replied sheepishly, "So anyway thank you for agreeing to watch the kids for me, they already know about you guys coming." Iruka gestured at the two doors.

"Bye." He waved and then he was gone.

Everyone was silent.

"So…who wants to watch the three year olds?" Ino asked.

"Are they toilet-trained?" Naruto asked.

"I don't think they are...I mean some of them might be…" Yuki replied unsurely.

"Well then, I'm not watching them."

"Alright, how about we split into two groups?" Sakura suggested.

"I'll take Neji, and Ino, then Sakura, Sasuke and Naruto. How's that?" Yuki said.

"But I don't know how to change diapers." Ino said, "Otherwise I'm perfectly fine with watching the kids."

"I know how," Yuki volunteers, "I'll just teach you. And I think the package comes with instructions…I hope."

"Hn." Neji grunted.

"Okay…" Naruto said unsurely.

"Hn." Sasuke grunted as well.

"Then it's settled. Let's go, guys!" Sakura said cheerily and she seized both Naruto and Sasuke by the wrists and proceeds to drag them over to the Pine Room.

* * *

><p>"Hi everyone! I'm Sakura-nee-chan and this is Sasuke-nii-chan and Naruto-nii-chan. We're gonna be your teachers for now because Iruka-sensei had something important to do, okay?" Sakura said kindly to the kids.<p>

"Okay!" The kids all reply in chorus.

"Now if you want to know anything, just ask." Sakura said with a large smile.

The kids suddenly shot all sorts of questions at them.

"One at a time, kids." Naruto said.

"Sakura-nee-chan! I like your hair!" An adorable blonde girl said.

"Aw…Thank you. Aren't you just the sweetest little thing…" She gushed in response.

"Does Sasuke-nii-chan talk?" A boy with glasses asked.

"Dude, they think you're mute." Naruto snickered at Sasuke.

"Yes, I can talk."

"Can we do finger painting?" A cute brunette asked shyly.

"Of course we can, honey. But we don't have any paints."

"Yes we do!" Some random kid shouted. "Iruka-sensei keeps it in the grown-up cubby!" he pointed to one of the shelves that were way too high for any of the kids to reach.

"Alright. Those of you kids who want to go finger painting go sit at the tables while I get the stuff ready." Naruto said as he strolled over to the 'grown-up cubby' and grabbed a few plastic dishes and poured a bit of paint in every dish.

Sasuke just sat glumly in the corner, being his usual antisocial emo self. To his surprise, a little girl approached him and asked the strangest questions.

"Can I touch your hair?"

"Hn."

"Does that mean yes?"

"…Yes?"

"Okay. Ooh, it's so pointy! Why don't you talk much?"

"Because."

"Why?"

"Just because."

"Can you do a magic trick? My dad can do magic tricks! He's a mawican!"

"A magician?"

"Yeah." The little girl nodded proudly. "He can make stuff appear by magic!"

"Well, I can make stuff disappear by magic." Sasuke offered. "Here, watch."

He laid a piece of candy in the center of his palm and closed it.

"Now count to three." He told her.

"One, two, three! It's gone!"

True enough, his palm was as empty as Naruto's ramen bowl after he's done with it.

"Wow! Look everyone! Sasuke-nii-san is a magician!"

Every kid who wasn't focused on Sakura's pink hair or staring at Naruto's pathetic attempt at a finger-painting of a bowl of ramen immediately charged at Sasuke.

"Hey!" Naruto grinned at him and pointed a paint-covered finger, "Look who's getting along with the kids. You should probably stop frowning, though, might scare them off."

"Shu-"

"Sasuke, language! There are," Sakura paused and glanced at the kids and decided to voicelessly mouth '_five-year-olds'._

Sasuke got it…well at least she thought he did. And so they spent an hour like that, with Sasuke doing really crappy magic tricks that only children (and the occasional woman on a sappy date) do enjoy, Sakura trying to convince the kids that 'No I did not dump strawberry milkshakes on my head and _why do you ask._' and '_It's nice that you like it but please stop yanking my hair'_, and Naruto doing finger-paintings that could probably pass as abstract pictures in some fancy art auction.

* * *

><p>Okay, so maybe babysitting three year old kids isn't the best plan...<p>

Yuki was keeping some of the little brats busy by letting them fly around the room like some oversized Tinkerbell (On the condition that's 'it's a secret no telling mommy and daddy, alright?'

Ino was reading others a picture book, and when she finished, she went to stand by Neji and watch Yuki 'entertain' the kids.

"You know that she can't let them fly around forever." Ino reminded him.

"Hn."

Ino assumed that the grunt meant something all the lines of _'We are dead meat.'_

"Neji-nii-chan...I wanna to go potty." A small boy tugged at Neji's shirt.

She mentally groaned, '_Yeah we are **so** dead.'_

* * *

><p>At some point Sakura <em>must <em>have glanced at her watch and it _must _have occurred to her that it was time for snacks. _And_ she _must _have dragged Sasuke to the kitchen with her, because that's where they were now, in the kitchen, making fifteen PB&J sandwiches.

Oh, and he insists on adding tomatoes.

"No, Sasuke, you _can't_, and I repeat, _can't_, put tomatoes on the sandwiches." Sakura sighed in exasperation. Crushing on him is one thing, letting him poison some poor kid's sandwich with vegetables is another.

"It's healthy." Sasuke said in response.

"It's disgusting, Sasuke. I mean, who adds tomatoes to peanut butter and grape jelly?"

"I do."

"Other than you."

"Hn."

"That's what I thought."

* * *

><p>After two hours, both teams were tired though they must admit they had expected worse.<p>

"Well, I am never doing that again." Naruto whined as he glanced at his arm sorrowfully. It was covered in paint after the kids ran out of paper and decided that Naruto-nii-san's arm was a good substitute.

Everyone else, too tired too argue, either groaned or grunted in response.

And so, once Sakura dragged herself to her bed, she immediately closed her eyes and dreamed.

In her dreams she heard voices, and saw flashes of people.

"_They can't possibly make her do this!" Ino murmured, horrified._

"_There's nothing wrong with her. I don't know what I can do." Tsunade's voice sounded distant._

"_I can't find him. You can't do anything either. His soul isn't anywhere I can sense. It's like he doesn't exist." Yuki squeezed her hand._

"_I don't know who you are. I'm sorry." Sasuke stared at her._

"_I was dead. Surely, if that were true, then this must be false." A familiar black-haired man said disbelievingly._

_**You have seen too much of what is yet to be, child. I cannot let you learn more, for you may lose sight of what it is that lies before you.**_

* * *

><p><strong>Hey guys! New chapter is up! I'd like to point out that I'm considering holding the next chapter hostage for more reviews. :3<strong>

**But don't worry, I won't do that to you guys as long as you keep the reviews coming.**

**The sad little one-shot I'm working on will be up in two weeks. :D  
><strong>

**The plot is cliche though, so I'm not expecting good feedback. But then I always keep my expectations low so I won't get let down. :(**

**Anyway, please, REVIEW!**

_**xoxo, Daemonic Maid  
><strong>_


	7. Chapter 6 Party Party

**Lost Paradise**

**Chapter 6 - Party Party!**

* * *

><p>"Come on, hurry!" Yuki skipped towards the door.<p>

"Why is she so excited?" Sakura humorously asked no one in particular.

"You'll see when we get there." Yuki said, her grin practically threatening to tear her face in half.

* * *

><p>"You can't be serious, is that white <em>wine<em>?" Naruto stared open-mouthed at the bottles table.

Yuki grinned deviously. She had managed to rent out a private room just for them.

"Oh, no! _That_'s just sparkling apple juice, non-alcoholic," her hand dug into her large black hobo bag and re-emerged with a bottle, "_This _is wine." She took out another bottle, "And _this _is vodka." And she set the wine and vodka on the table before digging around in her bag once more, "And _this_, believe it or not, is tequila."

"And where did you get all that?" Sakura asked dazedly, staring at the table.

"Oh, in my room, actually I happen to have two more bottles of tequila there."

"I see…"

Naruto stared at Yuki like she was a goddess come to earth. "You are fucking amazing."

"I _know_, right?" She said as she gave him a high-five.

"Well, this room is soundproof, and the windows are tinted. The door is locked. And I already have anti-hangover potions in my bag. So go ahead and get yourselves wasted." Yuki instructed.

* * *

><p>Two hours later, some of the boys (coughNarutocough) have managed to go through enough vodka to shamelessly sing in front of the girls, who were sticking to the champagne, and of course, were still relatively sober.<p>

"_I'm a Barbie girl, in a Barbie wooooorld!"_ Naruto could be heard warbling drunkenly.

"Wait. Why aren't _we _drinking?" Ino wondered.

"Because I have a video camera in my bag, and it is dying for some footage, why else?" Yuki smirked deviously, "But of course you guys can go ahead and get yourselves stoned and risk getting caught on tape. Now if you excuse me, I'm going to grab that mike from Naruto before my ears bleed." She stood and did exactly as she said before she chose a song for herself.

_"It doesn't matter if you love him or capital H-I-M. Just put your paws up, 'cause you were born this way, baby_." Yuki chanted with a grin before she sang Born This Way.

"Oh well, at least she doesn't sing like Naruto." Ino babbled, "Anyway I'm trying 'Telephone' later, what about you?"

"Maybe something old, like 'Your Guardian Angel'?" Sakura shrugged before sipping her champagne.

"Oooh, you're a good singer, maybe you can do a duet with Sasuke! I heard he has an awesome voice."

"I wouldn't know- I haven't ever heard him sing." Sakura shrugged.

_"I'm beautiful in my way, 'cause God makes no mistakes, I'm on the right track, baby, I was born this way!"_

"Is it just me, or is Naruto about to stripdance on the sofa?" Ino squinted.

"Quick, gimme Yuki's bag. We need to get this on tape." Sakura grinned deviously.

Within seconds, they had Yuki's camera set on video and were taping Naruto's every move.

Sasuke and Neji, who had enough sense not to get totally wasted before the girls do, were seated away from Naruto, both looking horrified.

"This is _gold_." Ino giggled.

_"Don't hide yourself in regret, just love yourself and you're set, I'm on the right track, baby, I was born this way!"_

Naruto started to strip off his pants while moving to the beat.

At this point, a sober Sasuke would have thrown a large, hardbound copy of _War and Peace_ at Naruto's (rather empty) head, however since the sober Sasuke has long since left the building and has been replaced with the drunk, terrified Sasuke, he simply grabbed Yuki and spun her around to face the monstrosity that is a half-naked Naruto.

Yuki winced and stopped singing. "Well. I certainly didn't plan this. Ew."

Sakura and Ino were also avoiding the sight of ramen patterned boxers but still managed to keep the camera pointed at it.

"I think someone better stop him soon." Ino whispered.

"_Paralyze!"_

Everyone turned to Naruto, who was frozen in place with his thumb in the waistband of his boxers, then to Yuki, who shrugged. "I panicked."

"Well, scoot. It's Sakura's turn to sing now." Ino moved her hand in a shoo-ing motion.

"Right. Here." Yuki tossed Sakura the mike.

"Sasuke, you too. We've been dying to hear you sing." Ino grabbed the second mike and tossed it to him.

Sasuke looked at the mike then back at Ino and shrugged. It's not like they were gonna remember this in the morning.

* * *

><p><em>"When I see your smile, tears roll down my face, I can't replace."<em> Sakura started singing softly. _"And now that I'm strong I have figured out how this world turns cold and it breaks through my soul and I know I'll find deep inside me I can be the one."_

"_**I will never let you fall**__," _Sasuke sang.

_"Let you fall…" _echoed Sakura._  
><em>

_"__**I'll stand up with you forever,"**_They sang together.

_"**I**__**'ll be there for you through it all.**__"_

_"Through it all…"  
><em>

_"__**Even if saving you sends me to heaven,**__" _Their harmonious voices filled the room._  
><em>

_"It's okay. It's okay. It's okay." _Sakura hit the notes perfectly._  
><em>

_"__**Seasons are changing and waves are crashing and stars are falling all for us. Days grow longer and nights grow shorter…I can show you I'll be the one."**_They sang together.

"_**I will never let you fall"**_

_"Let you fall…"  
><em>

_"__**I'll stand up with you forever**__"  
><em>

_"__**I'll be there for you through it all**__"_

_"Through it all…"  
><em>

_"__**Even if saving you sends me to heaven**__"_

"Cuz you're my, you're my, my true love, my whole heart, please don't throw that away…"

"_**Cuz I'm here for you. Please don't walk away and please tell me you'll stay, woah, stay, woah…"  
><strong>__  
>"<em>_**Use me as you will"  
><strong>_

_**"**__Pull my strings just for a thrill"_

_"__**And I know I'll be okay**__"  
><em>

_"Though my skies are turning gray"_

"_**I will never let you fall…"**_

_"Let you fall…"  
><em>

_"__**I'll stand up with you forever…**__"  
><em>

_"__**I'll be there for you through it all…**__"_

_'Through it all…"  
><em>

_"__**Even if saving you sends me to heaven!**__"_ They ended perfectly.

* * *

><p>"Wow…Well, since I can't possibly beat their singing, <em>I<em> think we should start a game of poker." Ino grinned deviously as she produced a deck of cards from the depths of her bag.

"I'm in." Sakura immediately volunteered. None of them were completely sober.

"I don't know how to play so you guys have fun!" Yuki waved as she plopped herself down on the sofa as far away from Naruto as possible.

Neji and Sasuke wordlessly sat down beside Ino and Sakura.

"Loser has to down a shot of tequila." Sakura proposed and she was met with smirks and a grin.

An hour of poker later, everyone was sufficiently drunk, even Yuki who had a few shots of tequila as well.

"Okay, let's play Truth or Dare!" Ino practically screamed, "Everyone sit on the floor in a circle. That includes _you_, Boxer Man!" She waggled a finger at the still-paralyzed Naruto.

Yuki, who _finally_ remembered what she had forgotten, finally dropped the spell and Naruto comically crashed to the ground, a bit more sober than he had been an hour ago.

Everyone gathered in a circle with various expressions of amusement as Ino set an empty vodka bottle in the center.

"I'll go first." She spun the bottle and it pointed at Sasuke.

"Chicken Butt, truth or dare?"

"Truth."

"For how long have you wanted to kiss Sakura? And don't even try to lie 'coz I cantell ven you lyin.'" Ino asked, not noticing that she had slurred the last few words.

Sasuke sputtered, "What?"

"I said-"

"A year," Sasuke interrupted her.

Ino smirked and glanced at Sakura's red-as-a-tomato face.

Sasuke spun the bottle and it landed on Yuki.

"Truth or Dare?"

"Uhm…truth?"

"Are you a virgin?"

"Hell? Where'd 'ya get that?" Yuki blinked.

"Answer the question, Snowflake."

"No…and don't call me Snowflake!" Yuki huffed at the mention of her old nickname.

She spun the bottle and grinned deviously when it landed on Neji.

"My dear albino almost-brother," Yuki grinned wider, "truth or dare?"

"I'm not albino. And dare."

"I dare you to let me braid your hair."

"_Fuck_ you…" Neji drunkenly cursed but allowed Yuki to kneel behind him and start braiding his hair.

"'Love 'ya too, albino." She responded.

Neji reached for the bottle and gave it a good spin.

"Yamanaka, truth or dare?"

"Dare me, honey!"

"I dare you…to make out with Naruto."

Ino got up and did just that, making sure it lasted for more that a minute. It ended with Naruto getting sufficiently stunned.

"Well, I didn't need to see that." Sakura winced.

Ino smiled at everyone before spinning the bottle and watching it land on Sakura.

"Sakura, _dahling,_ truth or dare?"

"Dare."

"I swear, you'll dank me for thisomeday. _Both _of you." Ino slurred before she grinned, "Sakura, I dare ju, to make out with Sasuke ver a whole five minutes."

Sakura blushed red as a tomato. And she shyly crept in front of Sasuke and softly pressed her lips to his. Sasuke cupped her cheek and deepened the kiss, making Sakura moan in pleasure. Ten minutes later, Yuki looked up from her finished work (a neat French braid down the center of Neji's head) and said "Someone better pull them apart before the start fucking like rabid bunnies."

Sakura and Sasuke immediately stopped sucking each other's faces off and Sakura finally spun the bottle.

"Naruto, truth or dare?"

"Truth!"

"Did you like making out with Ino?"

"Well, she is a good kisser…" Naruto contemplated, "but then, I don't think she's the" _hic! _"right girl" _hic! _"for" _hic!_ "me."

Naruto spun the bottle and watched as it landed on Ino.

"Okay piggy, truth or dare?"

* * *

><p>At some point in the game, someone dared Naruto to jump out the window (And he did) and so Yuki (being the most sober out of the group because she didn't play poker) decided it was time to go home. She teleported all of the back to their own rooms and tucked them into bed, but not before making them each drink a small vial of her anti-hangover potion.<p>

* * *

><p>The next day, all of the teens were dressed and ready to go to school, and after they were summoned to the auditorium by Kakashi who said to 'dress nice'.<p>

Which is why Ino and Sakura had to wear gowns magically conjured by Yuki. They were gorgeous and comfortable ─ Yuki knew her stuff. Sakura herself had been told she looked like an angel by Naruto, and Sasuke even added an affirmative nod. And they both looked pretty good themselves too, with Naruto dressed in a tux and Sasuke in a suit. She nervously fiddled with the hem of her pure-as-the-driven-snow dress. As she looked in the mirror, she saw a stranger with a golden halo in her soft, pink wavy hair, shimmering emerald eyes, and a white, gorgeous strapless gown with an empire waist, gold embellishments and full-length skirt that flowed past her feet and hid her shoes.

"Sakura, it's time to go." Ino said, in her dark purple dress with a halter neckline and beautiful shimmering beadwork. She examined her amethyst-studded ankle-breaking high heels and reached up to smooth down her already perfectly smooth French twist.

"Wait, I don't think we should go— something bad's going to happen tonight. I can feel it." Sakura said, watching her worried reflection in the mirror.

With a confident smile, Ino gave her wrist a comforting squeeze. "Don't worry. We are going to be with a lot of competent fighters, so we'll be totally safe... and late if we don't leave right now."

* * *

><p>When they reached the auditorium, they were not surprised by the fact that Tsunade was standing at the podium onstage with the Akatsuki members and the Sand siblings seated at the background, they were wondering, however, where Yuki had disappeared to.<p>

"I have called you all here today, to announce that the organization Akatsuki, which has long been a formidable opponent, has now proposed an alliance, between them, and us.

"And on behalf of Konoha I have accepted the offer." Murmurs and gasps resonated through the audience.

"And now, in order to reinforce this treaty, we have arranged for an exchange of members." Tsunade said before stepping away from the podium, "To represent our loyalty to the treaty, I have chosen one of our best, Uchiha Yuki."

Yuki stood onstage, in her stunning crimson and black off-shouldered gown and black heels, with an impressive fake grin plastered on her face.

"They can't possibly make her do this," came Ino's horrified murmur. Sakura had a familiar feeling of déjà vu.

Kisame stood on the podium, "And on behalf of Akatsuki, we have chosen Uchiha Itachi."

"And they will now both swear their allegiances on the river Styx." Tsunade continued then afterward, nodded at Yuki.

Yuki spoke one line that seemed to echo throughout the room even though she was nowhere near the microphone. "I swear on the River Styx to remain loyal to Akatsuki for as long as I live."

"I will remain loyal to Konoha for as long as I live, this I swear on the River Styx." Itachi said in monotone.

"An oath on the River Styx? Damnit! That's irreversible!" Sasuke cursed as the rest of the audience cheered.

"What does this mean?" Sakura asked, puzzled.

"This, Sakura, means that Yuki is no longer part of Konoha." Kakashi drawled lazily as he flipped a page.

"You! You're not surprised…how?...You _knew, _didn't you, you fucker." Sasuke snarled.

"Now Sasuke, language." Kakashi warned.

"How could she? I thought we were a team." Naruto said.

"I had no choice, you moron." Yuki's voice suddenly came from behind them, "Sorry for not telling you guys."

"_Why?_" Sasuke asked, clearly, he was not himself today.

"I'm a necromancer. Sasuke, listen to me, you're my cousin, okay? I love you like my own brother, and I'm sorry I didn't tell you this sooner. I'm really sorry." Yuki said softly before she hugged him.

"When?"

"I'm leaving in a few minutes, right after the paperwork's done… Naruto, Neji, you guys are the best teammates a girl could ask for. Take care of the others for me, okay?"

Naruto choked back a sob and Neji gave a solemn nod.

"Why? What's wrong with being a necromancer? Isn't that what Hecate is? The goddess of necromancy?" Sakura cried.

"They don't like having necromancers here, Sakura, so they were going to make me leave, then the Akatsuki requested an alliance so they took the chance to get rid of me. Sakura, Ino, you girls better toughen up, these boys are going to need some girl power." Yuki said through a teary smile.

Sakura and Ino gave her sad smiles as they hugged her tightly. Suddenly the floor shook wildly and a loud explosion echoed from outside.

Yuki wiped away her tears and adopted a fierce expression.

The boys shared a look before three words from Kakashi confirmed their suspicions.

"We're under attack."

* * *

><p><strong>Hello everyone, I'm back!<strong> **I truly apologize for not updating last week, it's just that I'm really busy these days with school. But, as promised, my little oneshot is up! Please go check it out, and don't forget to review! :3**


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